Truth in Training for the High-End Fight
When it comes to air combat readiness, the need to close proficiency gaps and retain tactical, operational and strategic superiority against a peer competitor has never been greater. Join us at Hook'24 to learn how Cubic's LVC Training solutions address these challenges and ensures that U.S. warfighters receive the training to prepare them to face an advanced and capable enemy on Night One.
Advanced Training Environment (ATE)
Achieving the Advanced Training Environment for the Multi-Domain Fight
Advanced Training Environment (ATE) combines instrumentation, blended Synthetic Inject to Live – Live Virtual Constructive (SITL-LVC) and Simplified, Planning, Execution, Analysis, Reconstruction (SPEAR) common data model technologies to emulate potential peer fight scenarios with authentic complexity and density.
Utilizing the ATE, the warfighter can mirror representative advanced threats in real-world combat scenarios, enable precise assessment of training proficiency, and support the test of Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs) used by U.S. Military Service, Joint, and Coalition integrated operations. The ATE provides Component Commanders ‘Speed to Insight’ offering a strategic lever to readiness and training capabilities west of the international date line.
Train Like You Fight
With over 50 years of Air Combat Training System (ACTS) experience, Cubic is well-versed in fielding systems with backwards compatibility and futureproofing in mind. Cubic continues to deliver enhancements to the P5 Combat Training System (P5CTS) system for the USN and USAF, including P5 System Security Update (P5SSU), ensuring training continuity across seven production blocks, including the F-35 P5 Internal Subsystem (P5IS).
The Cubic P5 SSU is a contracted field modification to existing P5 pods to provide encrypted ACMI to 4th Gen P5 pods for the USAF for less than 10% of the cost of alternatives. Testing of the P5 SSU updates has progressed extremely well, and Cubic is on track to field the first SSU field upgrade kits in late 2024. P5 SSU encrypted signals are directly compatible with Cubic’s F-35 P5 IS providing untethered Level II integration. Cubic has delivered over 1200 F-35 P5 IS systems and remains the only Air Combat Training System option available for at least the next 3 years. The fielding of P5 SSU in combination with P5 IS enables a new level of training integration between 4th and 5th Generation Aircraft and enables protection of Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures at home station or abroad.
Providing SITL-LVC for all Mission Phases
As Lead System Integrator, Cubic has proven the ability to inject synthetic entities from human-operated simulators (Virtual) and computer-generated-forces (Constructive) into live cockpits: platforms, weapons, and effects across the electromagnetic (EM)/infrared (IR) spectrums. In addition to technical demonstrations on DoD ranges, Cubic has now successfully delivered a Joint MILS NSA Type 1 encrypted SITL-LVC solution using IEEE Open Standard protocols and the U.S. Government owned 5G-ATW waveform through the Navy Continuous Training Environment (NCTE) for real-world operations, training, and test west of the International Dateline.
SITL-LVC is an available, high TRL solution for the DoD and our partners/allies to achieve a decisive training advantage against a pacing peer threat for 4th- and 5th- generation platforms. Cubic, our Industry partners, and government have proven that SITL-LVC can be achieved with minimal investment in technologies available today.
As an enabler to SITL-LVC, Cubic’s SLATE (Secure Live Virtual and Constructive Advanced Training Environment) pod is a TRL8+ proven and tested solution that provides SITL-LVC in addition to traditional aircraft instrumentation capabilities. The SLATE pod has flown more than 180 sorties in four contrasting operating environments on three different 4th generation platform types (i.e., F/A-18E/F, EA-18G, F-15E, F-16C, and X-62A). SLATE supports threat realistic blended training environments where live operating platforms combat displays are augmented with injects from simulator and computer-generated forces.
The SLATE pod improves and is built upon the original P5 CTS / TCTS I tube assembly with a modified internal core. New components include a KOV-135 encryptor, software defined radio (SDR), and LVC Processor that provides advanced live training with dense threat environment and realistic cockpit presentation (advanced guising). SLATE was used in this year’s DARPA X-62A Air Combat Evolution (ACE) as well as Exercise Valiant Shield 2024. P5/TCTS I pods can be SLATE modified at a lower cost point than new production pods in development.
Speed to Insight for Real-World Operations, Training, and Test
SPEAR (Simplified Planning Execution Analysis and Reconstruction) is a revolutionary common data model (CDM) software tool for multi-domain operations, training, and test. SPEAR implements a modern, DoD approved tech stack that reduces cognitive burden through optimizing the displays and analytics for kill chain events, mission rehearsal, live monitoring, resource management, and debrief. SPEAR’s data architecture allows for ingest and lossless export of objective and subjective data -including, LVC, kinetic and non-kinetic effects, as well as weapon fly out. Enriched data through SPEAR provides the required data labeling for performance and predictive analytics, learning management, readiness assessments, and AI/ML algorithms.
Users can open a single SPEAR application, authenticate via credentials, and access callable “workspaces” tailorable for their specific task. The SPEAR server/client architecture allows for seamless distributed live execution monitor and debrief from geographically separated units in real time. Before, during, and after the mission cycle, SPEAR uses channelization to process all data ingest and adjudication at the same time from every SPEAR client.
SPEAR gets you to “What Happened?” quickly, leaving more time to figure out “Why it Happened?” SPEAR has now proven itself at Red Flag, Checkered Flag, Cobra Warrior, Exercise Valiant Shield and the U.S. Air Force’s F-35 6th Weapons Squadron. 2024 has seen a significant increase in SPEAR utilization around the world!