air combat maneuvering instrumentation system ACMI

18, 2013, Eielson Air Force Base, Alaska. An air-combat maneuver instrument pod sits on a Japan Air-Self Defense Force F-15J Eagle Aug. The F-35 Lightning II will have its own internally mounted variant of the system. While not confirmed, the pod should be using an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), GPS and Solid-State Recorder (SSR) similar to its predecessor, while the datalink should be a new one, as demonstrated by the new antennas on the pod. Like the TCTS, the new pod maintains the same form factor of the Sidewinder air-to-air missile, using the AIM-9’s and AIM-120’s connectors to interface with the aircraft. The new TCTS II pod integrates all the features of the previous pod in an open architecture system that represents the first certified encrypted, Multiple Independent Levels of Security (MILS) training equipment in both airborne and ground equipment. The initial TCTS pod featured real-time weapons simulations and live monitoring functions for air-to-air, air-to-ground and surface-to-air missions, with Real-Time Kill Notification (RTKN), No Drop Weapons Scoring (NDWS) and Electronic Warfare simulation capabilities. The result is the TCTS II system developed by Collins Aerospace and Leonardo DRS, an evolution of the TCTS initially developed by Cubic. Navy and Marine Corps inquired the industries to find innovative methods that could revolutionize the way air combat training is conducted while also improving integrated training readiness at the same time. As technology, adversaries and threats evolved, training requirement for modern combat scenarios changed in turn, so the U.S. Traditionally, air combat training included a mix of live and simulated range training missions to prepare aircrews for real world combat. The tests were conducted on an F/A-18E/F Super Hornet of Air Test and Evaluation Squadron (VX) 23 at Naval Air Station Patuxent River. NAVAIR (Naval Air Systems Command) recently announced that the Naval Aviation Training System and Ranges program office completed on Novemthe initial tests on a next-generation Air Combat Maneuvering Instrumentation (ACMI) training system, called Tactical Combat Training System Increment II (TCTS II). (Photo: NAVAIR) The New Tactical Combat Training System (TCTS) Increment II ACMI pod will replace the current TCTS/P5CTS pod used for training by Navy, Marines and Air Force. The Tactical Combat Training System Increment II (TCTS II) pod successfully completed its initial hardware qualification testing at Patuxent River November 6.

Air combat maneuvering instrumentation system ACMI