The world of warfare is very digital these days which, given cost constraints, environmental concerns, flexibility requirements and speed, makes total sense. War is expensive, fast-moving and destructive, so there are serious advantages not having to constantly prepare for it in reality.
It means defence forces around the world use virtual battlefield simulators (VBS), as in popular video games, to train personnel.
Bohemia Interactive in Australia (BIA), a wholly-owned subsidiary of BAE Systems, recently said the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) had awarded the company a contract to upgrade its desktop computer simulation system.
NZDF has used VBS for 15 years, and version 4 supports over 100 training cases for collective tactical and mission rehearsals. The VBS4 version the NZDF uses provides customised simulation, and BIA developed an improved representation of the NZ Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV), made by Canada's General Dynamics which in turn licensed a Swiss MOWAG design.
Continued maintenance of the TerraTools terrain generation software is also included in the contract. TerraTools is used to create highly realistic terrain for the sim, and that includes the whole Earth.
VBS4 can be used for amphibious manoeuvres, and importantly in 2024, drone simulation.
BAE Systems bought Bohemia Interactive in 2022, and as the name implies, the company has Czech origins. It was born out of the eponymous games studio headquartered in Prague, home of the Flashpoint and Arma series of video games.
Bohemia Interactive specialises in virtual military sims, and does it so well that real-life armed forces have been customers for years now:
"The Real Virtuality engine served as the heart of our Arma series for quite some time. Its numerous qualities were also appreciated by the US and UK armed forces, who used the VBS training platform developed by Bohemia Interactive Simulations," the company says.
Those of us who have committed way too many hours to the Flashpoint and Arma games can confirm that they're very realistic.
You can't write about a topic like this without mentioning the hardware specs. Tobias Widemar, Bohemia's marketing manager said the computers are supplied by the NZDF Command and Control Systems School.
They have a "very aggressive computer case" with five 160 mm fans for cooling. Inside the case there's this:
- Intel Core i9 13900k processor
- 64 gigabytes of RAM
- Nvidia GeForce 4090 graphics
- 810 Watt power supply
It's not clear if the gear is assembled by the CCSS, or if it's a branded systems bought off the shelf.
Apart from the NZDF, defence forces in Australia, 60 NATO countries and friendly nations use the VBS software.
6 Comments
Advanced simulations to train people and try things out before doing it all our in the real world: failing fast, cheap and informatively to know what works when it's real and potentially fatal.
Can't help but wonder if underpinning decision making in other areas by using that approach might be a good idea.
In the late 1930s, Neville Chamberlain, the British Prime Minister, pursued a policy of appeasement toward Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany. The most famous instance of this was the Munich Agreement in 1938, where Chamberlain, along with leaders from France and Italy, agreed to allow Germany to annex the Sudetenland, a region of Czechoslovakia with a significant ethnic German population. Chamberlain believed that by conceding to some of Hitler's demands, he could prevent a larger war in Europe.
Chamberlain returned to Britain proclaiming that the agreement had secured "peace for our time," but this hope was short-lived. Hitler continued his aggressive expansion, eventually leading to the outbreak of World War II when Germany invaded Poland in September 1939. Chamberlain's policy of appeasement is often criticized as having emboldened Hitler and made war more likely.
We welcome your comments below. If you are not already registered, please register to comment.
Remember we welcome robust, respectful and insightful debate. We don't welcome abusive or defamatory comments and will de-register those repeatedly making such comments. Our current comment policy is here.