DSTO invites the Media to a Fly-In

Sections of the media were hosted by the Platform Sciences Laboratory at the DSTO Lorimer Street complex in Fishermans Bend Victoria. The Air Operations Division of the lab were revealing that their Battlelab Framework was now a functioning environment for use by the ADF and RAAF, in conjunction with American and British Defence organisations to explore real life scenarios in a simulated environment.

It will facilitate innovative thinking in areas of operations planning, systems acquisition, development of military doctrine and training.

Various ADF, RAAF and DSTO simulation nodes of operation will be located across Australia and these will be capable of linking up with real assets in real time, whether air force or sea power. See the attached link for the locations of the initial nodes.

The capabilities that the framework will provide and foster can be found here.

Picture shows the Director of the Platforms Sciences Laboratory, Dr Ian R Sare (FTSE), preparing for an interview with Channel 10 media, in front of the F/A-18 Simulator portable cockpit that can be moved around to different screens as required. DSTO has constructed portable cockpits for:

• F-111 aircraft

• F/A-18 aircraft

• Blackhawk Helicopters and various other platforms

This image shows Colin Martin, Chief of the Air Operations Division, who's division is responsible for the Aerospace Battlelab Framework, beside the newly developed simulator environment known as CUBE. It is made out of DSTO specially developed material that eliminates the need to build purpose-built cockpits that have formed or other irregular shapes. This means that multiple simulators could be used by a RAAF squadron at a fraction of the cost of a fully dedicated simulator and that each can be linked to form an operating squadron in a simulated environment that is capable of being linked to real airborne assets in real time.

Colin Martin watches over the control room operator who is monitoring a Black Hawk helicopter pilot flying a mission up the valley depicted on the two displays in front of the operator. The rear raised display shows the image of the helicopter as it manoeuvres through the valley. The pilot can fly pre-planned missions or the operator can intervene and introduce threats or other scenarios for the pilot to manage.