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VAST Offers Sailors Surface Fire Support Training Virtually Anywhere

NAVSEA News

07 March 2003

By Maria Zacharias, Naval Sea Systems Command Public Affairs

WASHINGTON -- In the wake of the Navy's decision to abandon Vieques as a training range by May, the effectiveness of a Naval Sea Systems Command (NAVSEA) program called Virtual At Sea Training (VAST) is receiving increasing attention.

VAST provides sailors with a realistic training experience either in port or in the open ocean. In conjunction with the Battleforce Tactical Trainer (BFFT) system onboard destroyers and cruisers, VAST allows sailors to practice surface fire support and get immediate feedback on their hits by means of a computer display that simulates a real land target with a 3D animated image on-screen.

In port, Sailors fire inert rounds and a computer model of the gun and gun ballistics is used to test the accuracy of their hits. When used in the open ocean, VAST includes live fire and an element called the Integrated Maritime Portable Acoustic Scoring and Simulator (IMPASS).

Funded by the Department of Defense and developed by the Naval Surface Warfare Center (NSWC) Indian Head Division, IMPASS deploys GPS-equipped acoustic buoys in the water around the target area. Another buoy onboard the ship allows sensors to record the impact of hits and radio the results back to the ship. Training participants are able to see the results onscreen, where an image of a land target shows the damage done by their hits.

In port or at sea, another element of VAST, the Marine Forward Observer, is a computer program simulating the view that a spotter would see as targets are fired upon. The screen is able to display a view of the synthetic battlespace from either a land perspective or from an aerial perspective, as might be seen from a virtual helicopter or unmanned aerial vehicle loitering overhead. Prompted by feedback from the Marine Forward Observer, training participants are able to make the necessary adjustments before firing-for-effect.

In an exercise in the Gulf of Mexico in November 2002, a 3-D image of Camp Pendleton gave training participants a target to fire on, and the various elements of VAST gave them detailed feedback on their performance with surface fire support.

There are currently three portable prototypes of VAST, all scheduled for delivery to the Fleet later this year. Beginning in 2005, plans are in place to make VAST an organic part of cruisers and destroyers.

Initiated by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) in 2001, the VAST Program was officially transferred to NAVSEA more than a year ago. The program is managed by the Program Executive Office for Integrated Warfare Systems, which also has responsibility for BFTT. Sponsored by ONR and the Fleet, VAST is supported by the Naval Surface Fire Support program, Indian Head Division (developer of IMPASS), NSWC Dahlgren Division (which offers a range for tests and demonstrations), and NSWC Crane Division, which does configuration management and logistics support for BFTT.

"With VAST, there is a lot of involvement from different agencies in the Navy," says Project Manager David Hagar. "We're able to take advantage of existing infrastructure and existing technology, which is great for any system development program."

Leveraging this infrastructure and technology has allowed VAST to meet a very aggressive development schedule to meet an imminent Fleet need. In the future, VAST is being looked at as a way to tie training together for the whole battlespace by expanding into the area of training for air support and undersea warfare. It also has much potential for joint use.

For now, VAST offers safe, all-weather training to increase the ability to maintain Fleet readiness. While computerized systems, properly programmed, will perform the same way every time, their successful implementation depends on clear communications between the people using them, especially in an inherently chaotic wartime environment.

"Communication between the people is the critical factor," says Hagar. "That's what this training is all about."