Modern warfare demands the need for agile, tactical through strategic mission rehearsal training. Like never before, the need to stay steps ahead of peer adversaries requires superior “train like you fight” solutions to prepare the warfighter for combat missions more effectively and with less risk. As warfare continues to diverge from previous constructs, so does the need to modernize combat training. Global technology, to include that from pacing threat nations, is advancing at exponential rates, hence the requirement for enhanced decision-making and the critical need for “speed to insight” to the warfighter.
To deliver and sustain combat credible multi-domain forces for Combatant Commands (COCOMs), proficiency training during deployment and Inter Deployment Training Cycles relies heavily on an authentic training environment. This environment is supported by requisite training infrastructure and capabilities, represented in blended Synthetic Inject To Live-Live Virtual Constructive (SITL-LVC) environments. The effects-based training environment must support multi-domain operations to include Service, Joint, and coalition participants with a robust, real-time, and post-mission visualization, debrief, and analytics capability for kinetic, non-kinetic, objective, subjective, raw, and curated data that supports machine learning and application of artificial intelligence for adaptive training.
The Role of “Multi-Domain” Mission Rehearsal
Today’s warfighter must be ready to tackle fast-paced, contested environments where threats can and will change quickly. Currently, the tyranny of distance and complex kill chains required for mission success and the responsibility of stakeholders to invest in increased operational effectiveness and training capacity cannot be understated. The need to navigate across various domains with precision and purpose calls for mission rehearsal solutions that mirror the intricate nature of “multi-domain” operations which allow all warfighters to hone their tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) in realistic scenarios. The Indo-Pacific theater exemplifies this need for accurate and integrated training environments.
Valiant Shield ‘24 unveiled Cubic’s Advanced Training Environment (ATE) creating a new gold standard for delivering superior multi-domain training. By combining SITL-LVC enabled instrumentation, COTS and GOTS simulators and Simplified, Planning Execution Analysis and Reconstruction (SPEAR), the ATE enables an authentic mission rehearsal and proficiency training for the high-end pacing threat. With many new threat and coalition capabilities emerging through software changes vice hardware, the speed at which Blue forces must Observe, Orient, Decide, and Act (OODA) requires a merging of traditional training and operational environments, particularly in the Western Pacific.
Similar to VS24, Sling Stone ’24 executed multi-nation capabilities, focusing on combining interoperability and expertise for Integrated Air and Missile Defense. These efforts served as a proving ground for the next generation of training solutions and a testament to the ingenuity of our coalition partners to prevail in an increasingly contested and interconnected world.
These two exercises highlight the shift toward integrated, high-fidelity training environments, demonstrating the importance of blending LVC training methodologies. Operators engaged in complex scenarios replicating real-world conflicts, seamlessly combining "red" adversary and "blue" friendly forces across air, land, sea and space domains. Both exercises proved to be incredibly advantageous, allowing the warfighter to refine TTPs, ensuring they are prepared for modern combat. The training proved how interconnected training solutions strengthen defense capabilities and improve overall readiness.
At Cope North 2025, our solutions introduced a new era in training, enabling posture and deterrence, exponentially increasing warfighter readiness. For the first time ever, the successful exercise integrated a blended environment of F-35 P5 Internal Subsystem (IS), ACMI pods, ground stations and SPEAR, delivering fully operational, high-fidelity tracking of three coalition F-35 partners and three variants of 4th gen fighters from three U.S. services.
What Sets Cubic Apart
Cubic is the world’s leading provider of air combat training systems. For decades, we have been at the forefront of innovation, continually raising the bar for what is possible. Valiant Shield and Sling Stone further validated the ATE as a vital part of developing participants into mission-ready operators. Our training solutions support all branches of the U.S. military and coalition partners around the world, delivering tools to truly elevate readiness and training proficiency.
The Future of “Multi-Domain” Mission Rehearsal
As we look to the future, the Indo-Pacific theater will continue to be a proving ground for the future of military training. By codifying LVC requirements and standards, as well as smartly investing in advanced network connectivity, high-fidelity simulators, and enhanced training range infrastructure, militaries can correctly mirror the complexities of real-world operations. This approach not only strengthens alliances but also reinforces interoperability among coalition partners.
Cubic’s air combat training solutions are continuing to set significant milestones in the evolution of “multi-domain” training. From the very first ACMI system installed in 1973 at MCAS Yuma, Cubic has helped our customers understand What happened in highly dynamic training scenarios. As the US Services and Allied partners incorporated high fidelity Time Space Position Information into their training syllabi, we helped them not only understand What happened, but then discuss Why it happened during the debrief. With the introduction of the Advanced Training Environment, we are now poised to address the most pressing question for the future pacing peer fight – What are we going to do differently the next time? As we move forward, the lessons learned from the INDOPACOM exercises will continue to shape the future of training. By investing in the technologies and methodologies that enable “multi-domain” operations, we can ensure that our warfighters are ready to prevail in the battles of today and tomorrow.
