A new virtual training device is being used by the US Army to enhance soldiers' training experiences ahead of deployment to the frontline.

The Reconfigurable Vehicle Tactical Trainer (RVTT), manufactured by Lockheed Martin, was officially opened last month at the US Army's Camp Aachen in the Grafenwoehr Training Area.

The RVTT (pictured) surrounds soldiers in a realistic virtual world. According to David W. Darnall, Program Manager for the 7th Army Joint Multinational Training Command (JMTC), the RVTT is a far more comprehensive - and realistic - training system for soldiers.

It is unlike a traditional simulator which limits users by only enabling them to look through a monitor. The RVTT, Darnall explains, is a 360-degree virtual world. He said: "There's no such thing as moving your mouse to glance right. In here, you glance right and you see the terrain moving. It becomes much more immersive."

Close Combat Tactical Trainer

The RVTT is also known as the Close Combat Tactical Trainer. It allows training commanders to replicate realistic combat environments and scenarios. This, says Darnall, will improve the effectiveness of training. "You're going to have the same rate of acceleration...you're going to have the same rate of fire on that weapon as you would in real life. You have to do the things you would normally do to be successful," said Darnall.

A key advantage of RVTT in this regard is the ability for an entire platoon to train simultaneously on the same mission. This also has the added benefit of reducing costs in fuel and ammunition. Darnall also explained that each RVTT scenario can be customised to take advantage of eight terrain databases, including the training sites of the Grafenwoehr and Hohenfels Training Areas in Germany.

The RVTT system consists of four to five trailers, two of which are equipped with life-size replica vehicles surrounded by floor-to-ceiling screens on which the images are projected. A third trailer provides command and control capabilities, with a fourth supplying power and a fifth spare parts.

The ultimate goal is to deploy RVTT as part of the US Army Europe's first Virtual Device Training Facility that will also incorporate Mobile Close Combat Tactical Trainers, mission simulators and the future Dismounted Soldier Virtual Trainer, a system that will allow up to 12 Soldiers to physically manoeuvre through a three-dimensional virtual world with the use of goggles and body sensors.