For example, this system allows an actual radar installation in northern Germany to detect a simulated Eurofighter flying over southern Germany, so that soldiers stationed at a real operational base at location X will believe that an enemy flying object is intruding into the airspace that they are responsible for defending. The ability to fully recreate complex exercise scenarios such as this, which previously involved several thousand men and heavy equipment operating in the open air, has up to now been compromised by various technical and safety restrictions. Today, this task can be performed by modern networked hardware and software systems. By far the most advanced of these systems is the VIRTEL network, which IABG developed and is now operating. The VIRTEL simulation platform can be used to prepare soldiers for their multi-national missions by teaching them to exchange information in real time. The technical objective in this case is to ensure that all the forces involved receive information that is relevant to their specific role.
The particular challenge posed by the VIRTEL network relates to the interfaces that allow the real and simulated weapons systems to be integrated into the network. This type of networking is only possible if the interfaces between the various services within the armed forces and between armed forces from different nations comply with harmonised technical standards. The fact that IABG is represented on the international committees responsible for defining these interface standards enabled us to take steps to ensure compliance with these standards at an early stage in the development of VIRTEL.
VIRTEL is the subject of ongoing development work and 2005 saw the start of a process of testing the network’s functional capabilities as part of the Electronic Warfare Live Training Exercises (ELITE). These annual exercises have been staged by the German Air Force since 1991 and have expanded in the intervening period to become the largest of their type in Europe. A total of 1,700 soldiers from 23 countries took part in the ELITE 2006 exercises held at the Heuberg training area in Baden Württemberg in May. Testing of the VIRTEL network involved the deployment of airborne weapons systems (such as Tornados, etc.) against ground-based weapons systems (surface-to-air missiles, anti-aircraft missiles, etc.) as part of an interactive simulation. Even though the participating forces were sometimes several hundred kilometres away from one another, they were all provided with an identical overview of the current status in real time. As a result, they were able to coordinate mission preparations despite the large distances separating them.
Even in the absence of large-scale aerial exercises, the VIRTEL IABG network and the simulations provided by the other participating companies (CAE, EADS, DBD) enabled the armed forces to train according to the principle of “Train as you fight, fly as you’re trained”. Over the medium and long term, it will be possible to replace large elements of the German Air Force ELITE exercise with virtual exercises that can be staged at any time. At the same time, we are keen to apply this network technology to other areas, one example being the integration of the command information systems operated by the three services, army, air force and navy. And we are certainly not ruling out the possibility that the insights gained from VIRTEL could one day also be used to integrate the driving data from real cars or aircraft into Internet computer games.
