Networking of full-fidelity simulators for advanced mission training

The Multiple Simulator Networking (MULTISIM) Research and Development Program has demonstrated successfully the feasibility and merits of simulated aviator team training by linking existing full-scale simulators within the Army´s Synthetic Flight Training Systems (SFTS) inventory. The authors report on the demonstration of the technology and application of MULTISIM at the Army Aviation Center at Fort Rucker, AL, using four existing SFTS devices. The demonstration showed the ease and cost-effectiveness that networking existing simulators can have and how team aviator training and research can be accomplished effectively. For certain segments of the combined arms community, the simulation must provide the heavy workload that the aviator experiences in actual combat. The tactical decisions which the aviator must make require use of the total flight envelope, maximum use of terrain, and exact use of available weapons, as well as coordination and communications. High-level research, as applied with MULTISIM, also requires these simulator characteristics to allow the study of weapon and avionics effectiveness, tactics, and doctrine in an accurately modeled, stressful, and interactive team setting, including man in-the-loop adversaries