UK Helping Its Fighter Pilots Do What Their Children Already Can

PC version Team ACTIVE, led by the quasi-private British firm QinetiQ, has won a GBP 7.8 million ($13.7 million) contract to supply a ‘Mission Training through Distributed Simulation’ (MTDS) Capability Concept Demonstrator. Sitting down to execute complex missions together may be standard for your children on their Playstation or PC, but many military pilots only experience complex multi-aircraft missions when they’re ordered to perform it live. The UK’s MTDS program aims to change that by using networked, ‘multi-player,’ full-immersion simulators to teach pilots group tactics and teamwork, as well as individual flying. Team ACTIVE (Aircrew Collective Training through Immersive Virtual Events) is led by QinetiQ, and includes Boeing, cueSim Ltd, Evans & Sutherland (E&S), Aviation Training International Ltd (ATIL) and HVR Consulting Services Ltd. More details regarding the UK MTDS program and its possible connections to US facilities can be found in Qinetiq’s corporate release. See also: * UK MoD (May 18/07) – “Fast-jet flying, indoors!” Covers the ACTIVE team’s Concept Capability Demonstrator (CCD), which forms part of MTDS.