The Army Takes Delivery of Tank Simulators

Two interesting articles from The Age


Army takes delivery of tank simulators
http://tinyurl.com/r3jmc

Ben DohertyAugust 23, 2006
IT'S the ultimate toy. Think of a supercharged PlayStation worth $4 million and you're close to imagining a tank simulator.

Yesterday, the School of Armour at the Puckapunyal army base unveiled its latest high-tech training tools: simulators to train drivers and gunners of Australia's new M1A1 AIM Abrams tank fleet.

The first 18 of 59 tanks are due to arrive from America in about a month, but training on the simulators will begin next week.

Hop inside and you're suddenly behind the wheel of an armoured tank worth many millions more than is worth contemplating, with the terrain mapped out for you across 120 degrees on massive television screens.

As you manoeuvre your machine across open countryside, or desert, or an urban streetscape, each movement of your controls affects your "tank".

Drive it too quickly down a hill and the machine jolts forward — with alarming force — to let you know you'll need to use a little more finesse next time.

In the gunnery trainer, you're in charge of the 120 millimetre cannon.
Your job is to seek out targets — be they helicopters, buildings or enemy tanks — and, quite simply, start firing shells.

It's a high-pressure gig, even in a simulator, and all the time the voice of your instructor is ringing in your ears, barking military commands such as "contact in three seconds".
About 50 armoured corps drivers come through Puckapunyal each year, and each will do about two-thirds of their training in a simulator.

They will do about 200 kilometres — or 10 hours — behind the controls of the computer screen tank before they get inside the real thing.

The idea is that drivers can hone their tank-driving skills without inflicting wear and tear on the expensive vehicles — and without the risk of crashing them. And gunners can train without wasting live rounds.

Army chief Peter Leahy said the opening of the simulators was a red-letter day for the Australian Army.
"This will take about two-thirds of the actual load off the tanks driving out on the range. We can do a lot of our training right here," Lieutenant-General Leahy said.
The 59 M1A1 AIM Abrams tanks — hand-me-downs from the US Army — and supplementary vehicles will be delivered to Australia over the next year at a cost of $528 million.
Some of the 60-tonne vehicles are 20 years old.

The Abrams fleet will replace the Australian Army's Leopard tanks, some of which have been in commission since 1977.
The Minister Assisting the Minister for Defence, Bruce Billson, opened the simulators yesterday and took charge of a "tank".

But he fears a post-parliamentary career as a tank driver may be beyond him.
He said the new simulators were "incredibly lifelike".

"These are a fantastic innovation. Simulation technology has been proven in aviation and here is an example, for the first time in our country, where we use it for land combat training," Mr Billson said.



Army takes delivery of tank simulators
http://tinyurl.com/r3jmc
Crew members for Australia's new Abrams tanks will now be able to practise driving and shooting even though they don't have any actual vehicles.

With the first of 59 tanks set to arrive later this year, the army has taken delivery of an advanced simulation system which allows crew to train on what are basically very advanced video games.

Junior Defence Minister Bruce Billson said the driver and gunnery trainers would permit realistic training while reducing tank operating costs and environmental damage.
"The systems potentially offer a two-thirds reduction in the ammunition and kilometres needed to qualify crew on the M1 AIM Abrams," he said in a statement.
"These new systems will allow armoured crews and their instructors to be well prepared for the new vehicle."

Mr Billson opened the new Abrams M1A1 AIM tank driver training (TDT) and advanced gunnery training system (AGTS) at the School of Armour in Puckapunyal, Victoria.
The driver training system simulates a variety of terrain and weather conditions with realistic motion but without leaving a classroom environment.

Instructors can test driver response to system failures at no risk to vehicles or personnel, while the gunnery system enables rigorous training without the high cost of using live ammunition.

Both systems, made by defence company Lockheed Martin, are in widespread use in the US Army.

In 2004, Australia announced it would buy 59 Abrams tanks to replace its ageing Leopard tanks in a deal worth $600 million.

The driver and gunnery simulators are being acquired as part of a logistic support package.
Under the contract, Lockheed Martin will provide the Australian army with two relocatable AGTS, four fixed-site AGTS and one tank driver trainer.
Training will be carried out at Puckapunyal and Darwin.