USN spends big on sim upgrade programmes

6th July 2021 - 09:30 GMT | by Trevor Nash in Holsworthy

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Previously supplied and supported by L3Harris Link, F/A-18/EA-18G devices will now be the responsibility of CAE. (Photo: L3Harris Technologies)

The USN is investing more than $1.3 billion in upgrading its flight training equipment and hardening the overall system against cyberattacks.

The USN intends to award several contracts over the next three years to upgrade its fleet of simulators to maintain currency with the aircraft and refresh older simulation technologies.

Speaking during the Training and Simulation Industry Symposium (TSIS) in Orlando on 16-17 June, the acquisition director at the Naval Air Warfare Center Training Systems Division (NAWCTSD), Mike Merritt, said that his emphasis will be on fewer new simulators, more upgrades to existing devices and providing increased levels of security and cyber protection.

If all of the upgrades go ahead, NAWCTSD will be investing more than $1.3 billion, mostly on sole-source contracts, notably …