Naval Group delivers new visual defense simulators to French Navy

The French Navy has received a new visual defense simulator (Simdav) at its base in Brest, the system manufacturer Naval Group announced on November 22.

Brest is the second base to receive the Simdav after Toulon received one at the end of 2016.

Both deliveries are part of a 5-year modernisation and through-life support contract awarded by the French armament procurement agency (DGA) to Naval Group (then DCNS) in December 2014.

The new systems will allow the crews of the French Naval Action Force (and the grouping of naval infantry and maritime gendarmes) to train under realistic conditions.

As the company explained, the new data systems and associated infrastructures, immerse the crews in a realistic environment “allowing for self-defence training in the face of all types of air and surface threats as well as asymmetric threats.”

The simulators will also train sailors to prepare and completely deploy small-calibre weapons.

“Thanks to these simulators, Naval Group will further strengthen its capacity to adapt to the needs of the French Navy to support them in the acquisition and maintenance of very specific operational skills,” underlines Nathalie Smirnov, director of services at Naval Group.

Almost 16 meters in diameter, each of these large domes houses a mobile platform mounted on 6 cylinders allowing the simulation of roll and pitch as a function of sea state. The virtual operations theater is projected onto the dome’s interior surface over 270°, to a height of 7 meters. The platforms allow the playing of fully-configurable exercise scenarios as a function of crew training needs for different types of ships (F70, FREMM, Horizon frigates…) and provide six fixed-weapon stations, three mobile-weapon stations and one command center.

The contract will also see Naval Group deliver three years of through-life support for the systems.