Cubic tailors mortar simulator for the US Army
The company’s mortar trainer received improvements based on soldier’s feedback.
Soldiers testing out prototypes for the Reconfigurable Virtual Collective Trainer – Ground during the Synthetic Training Environment Cross Functional Team’s User Assessment. (Photo: US Army/Maj Margaret Ziffer)
Orlando-based modelling and simulation specialist Cole Engineering Services has obtained a $192.61 million contract from the US Army for the Synthetic Training Environment (STE) - Information System Training Simulation Software/Training Management Tool.
The DoD announced on 14 June that Cole Engineering was selected ahead of ten other bids for the work, which will be completed by mid-October 2025.
STE is among the priority programmes for US Army modernisation; other examples include Long Range Precision Fires, Next Generation Combat Vehicle, Future Vertical Lift, Air and Missile Defense and Soldier Lethality. Total funding requested for these priorities increased from $9.4 billion in FY2021 to $11.2 billion in FY2022.
Indeed, the FY2022 DoD budget request sees funding for STE increase almost tenfold to $122 million. This reflects thinking at senior levels in the US Army: as Gen John Murray said in December 2020 at the vIITSEC conference, STE is ‘key and critical to what we are doing’ in terms of the future direction of soldier training.
The company’s mortar trainer received improvements based on soldier’s feedback.
The company will operate in two new locations in the coming years to better support US services.
This type of tool provides more realistic training easing the incorporation of new scenarios that accurately represent the threats of the battlefield.
The Engineering Corps has been conducting individual instruction using FLAIM Systems’ Sweeper and should start collective deployments in 2025.
The next-generation platform is motion-compatible and can be used in OTW and NVG applications.
The system can be used to prepare soldiers for both drone offensive operations and CUAS missions.