Environment (JSE), initially developed to undertake Initial Operational Test and Evaluation (IOT&E) for the F-35, will now be used for the F-22 and possibly NGAD. As well as IOT&E, the JSE at Edwards AFB will also be used for tactics development and to provide high-end training. “The JSE will be the backbone for live, virtual, constructive (LVC) test and training and its long term potential is huge,” said Maj Gen Christopher Azzano, Air Force Test Center commander. “The JSE is key to the evolution of Joint All-Domain Operations.” The Edwards JSE will work in conjunction with another JSE facility at Nellis AFB and feature eight high-fidelity dome-based simulators; these two centres being networked. Perhaps more importantly than the simulation technology that can be provided for next generation air forces are the questions of recruitment, training costs and how potential pilots transit through the training pipeline to reach the next generation air force? In simple terms, without these resources there will not be a next generation air force. The other factor to be examined is how current and future simulation technology will be used to improve training methods and this will be examined later. Recruitment and Training In terms of recruitment, does the raw material that is in high schools today need to be radically different from that which went before? Generation Z is clearly au fait with technologies such as the internet, iPads, mobile telephones and gaming, but these physical benefits associated with the current generation of ‘digital natives’ may not be enough when it comes to psychological attributes. Three decades ago, many mainly young men were queuing to join the military as pilots. Today, that is not the case. Perhaps the first question to be asked here iswhat is a next generation air force? The easy place to start is with the US Air Force and its Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) programme. Beginning its conceptual life in 2015 at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), NGAD has now embarked on its Engineering, Manufacture and Development (EMD) phase. According to the US Air Force, NGAD will provide, “a portfolio of technologies enabling air superiority” that will likely encompass, crewed and un-crewed platforms and a suite of highly capable sensors, some on the airborne platforms and others being space-based. The latter implies secure, wide-bandwidth data-links. An example of un-crewed platforms working in conjunction with crewed platforms can be seen in Australia and the US with the Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat programme. Originally developed for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF), Ghost Bat has now been linked to the sixth-generation NGAD. Ghost Bat made its first flight in February 2021 from the Woomera test range in Australia and is seen by many as a low-risk add-on to NGAD. Clearly, such platforms will also carry next -eneration weapon systems such as the Modular Advanced Missile that was unveiled recently in the US Air Force Research, Development, Test and Evaluation (RDTE) budget request. Another option would be the AIM-260 Joint Advanced Tactical Missile or JATM that is being developed by Lockheed Martin. NGAD and aircraft such as the B-21 Raider, the US Air Force’s longrange strike platform, are set to provide significant advances over current generation aircraft, but what impact will they have on training methods? Joint Simulation Environment In the wider context, not a lot, as the current swathe of extant simulation technology is thoroughly capable of replicating any future generation aircraft and warfighting capabilities. For example, the US Joint Simulation Specialising in training, simulation and airpower issues, Trevor Nash has a wealth of journalism and editorial expertise and is a regular contributor to MilTech. Trevor Nash Training for Next Generation Air Forces Feature MT 5/2022 · 21 The next generation air force will be dominated by platforms such as Tempest and NGDA. (Photo: BAE Systems)
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