We got an up-close look at the streets of Tikrit, Iraq, from the gunner’s turret of a mock-up Humvee during a visit to Lockheed Martin’s Simulation, Training, and Support facility in Orlando, Fla., during AFA’ Air Warfare Symposium. Surrounding the mock-up vehicle were several enormous computer screens with digital likenesses of the area down to empty paint cans and IED explosions, creating a very real experience. Originally designed for the Army, airmen also now use the Virtual Combat Convoy Trainer to gain experience before deploying to assist the Army with convoy duty. Soldiers and airmen train in full combat gear, said Lockheed spokesman Warren Wright. UAV feeds are also piped in to LCD monitors attached to the roof of Humvees, allowing several types of tactical simulations and command and control. The Air Force is about to get delivery of its own VCCT, which will be set up at Camp Bullis, Tex.—home of the Ground Combat School and the new Basic Combat Convoy Course for airmen. Air Education and Training Command has built a permanent facility for the BCCC called Camp Anderson-Peters, named after two airmen killed while performing convoy duties in Iraq.
For weeks, Operation Epic Fury showcased the breathtaking reach, precision, and persistence of American air and space power: more than 13,000 combat sorties and more than 12,300 targets struck by April 1. But numbers do not tell the most important story. What is truly important is what happened on April…