PLEXSYS’ ASCOT INTEGRAL IN U.K. LVC SCENARIO / REVEALS GREAT POTENTIAL FOR FUTURE DISTRIBUTED SYNTHETIC TRAINING

New Malden, UK:   Exercise ALTERNATIVE HORIZON II, A live complex training mission connected Typhoon pilots at RAF Leuchars with air and sea assets across four sites in the UK in the first training mission simulation of its kind.

PLEXSYS provided the ASCOT (Advanced Simulation Combat Operations Trainer) which was used to generate the battle-space environment, integrated with a BAE-developed mission scenario. BAE Systems used its Dedicated Engineering Network (DEN) to link simulators across four UK locations into a live battlespace scenario.  At the heart of the mission sat four Typhoon pilots flying the very latest aircraft software standard.

Royal Navy and RAF operators simulated a real-time complex mission scenario which saw four Typhoons conduct a complex swing role mission scenario.  All of this was done with varying degrees of complexity to assess tactics and communications between all the operators in the ASCOT environment over the BAE Systems Dedicated Engineering Network (DEN).  Linked into the scenario where;

• RAF Leuchars: 4 Typhoon simulators
• BAE Systems, Broad Oak:  Type 45 Destroyer operated by Royal Navy operators
• BAE Systems Warton: Typhoon simulators (trial viewing location).
• BAE Systems APEX Facility, New Malden; AWACS E-3D.

PLEXSYS also provided the AWACS E-3D Sentry emulation based at BAE, New Malden UK.

BAE Systems leadership was extremely pleased with the trial results, “The most important thing is that it felt realistic to those involved.  We hope that what we achieved through this trial today will allow us to develop the synthetic training environment further than ever before.”

Typhoon Force Commander attended the trial and said “Striking the right balance between live and synthetic training is of high priority to the Typhoon Force.  What we have seen today is a seamless integration of air and sea assets in a synthetic environment.  Proof that the technology exists today to train for tomorrow.”