This week, the state enterprise LOM PRAHA inaugurated a new building of the simulation centre NG1 for ground training at the Centre of Flight Training (CLV) in Pardubice. The symbolic ribbon-cutting ceremony with LOM PRAHA Director Jiří Protiva, VR Group Chairman of the Board Vít Ryška, Pardubice CLV Director Jaroslav Špaček, his deputy for ground training Jaroslav Šefle and Trigema Building Chairman of the Board Radim Šponar marked another milestone in linking practical and synthetic training of Czech Air Force pilots.

Report: New simulation centre NG1 is a move to the highest European level in pilot training / CZ DEFENCE

Jiří Protiva, the director of the state enterprise LOM PRAHA, told CZ DEFENCE that the opening of the simulation centre is a shift to the highest European level in pilot training, not only for tactical aviation. The new simulation centre includes the Full Mission L-39NG (L-39 Skyfox) simulator, with plans to relocate additional simulators here in the future. The new facility was built in an incredible 10 months. "In total, we needed just under 200 million crowns to build the simulation centre. This includes the construction of the building itself as well as the equipment and technologies," Protiva added.

Another unique feature is that the entire project is a purely Czech solution - from the building itself, through the simulation technology, to the role of the state enterprise LOM PRAHA, or CLV, which provides flight training not only to the Czech Army.

Simulation training is gaining more and more importance. "Simulations as such are playing a bigger and bigger role in pilot training. It is about efficiency, economy, but also safety of the flight training itself. In simulators, pilots train in a virtual, but very realistic environment for classic flight actions, as well as combat actions," said Jiří Protiva.

A key role in the new centre will be played by the L-39NG (Skyfox) subsonic jet simulator of the Flight Training Device Level 2 category produced by the LOM PRAHA VR Group subsidiary. This sophisticated training platform has been certified by the Military Aviation Supervision Department and in accordance with the internationally applicable regulations of the European Aviation Safety Agency. The simulator cabin is located in the centre of an eight-channel projection system, which projects an image of the surrounding scene onto a spherical projection surface with a horizontal view of 300° and a vertical view of 120°. The pilot is thus fully immersed in the virtual scene without any distractions. The projection also includes a heads-up display-HUD. The simulator's cutting-edge technologies include the Virtual Training System (VTS), which adds virtual radar and weapons systems to the aircraft, greatly expanding the range of tasks for training pilots.

The new facility will not only be used for ground training on L-39 Skyfox jets, which are now part of the Pardubice Air Training Centre's training fleet. There are also plans to implement Zlín Z-242/Z-143 helicopter simulators and Mi-17 and Enstrom 480B-G helicopter trainers.

The building has modern facilities, including classrooms, offices and briefing rooms, which are located on the first and second floors of the building. At maximum operation, about seventy people can train in the NG1 building at the same time, which was especially appreciated by the CLV director Jaroslav Špaček, who believes that the new facility will change the course of training new pilots. "We have not had any so-called Full Mission simulators so far. We only had simulators for cockpit procedures. This simulator can replace many flight hours. It will make flight training more efficient and cheaper. Around 40 to 45 percent of tasks can be completed on the simulator. Students first undergo classroom training using interactive screens. They start flying first on the simulator where they learn the basics, then they go into the aircraft. After that, they will alternate between flight lessons on the plane and the simulator," Jaroslav Špaček explained the changes in teaching.

The advantage of the simulator is, among other things, the fact that it allows training of emergency procedures that would otherwise be very difficult to practice in real life. For example, ejection and other crisis moments. The new L-39NG Full Mission Simulator will also allow for an increase in the total number of pilots in training within CLV. According to Director Špaček, it is a huge advantage that this simulator is available directly at the Pardubice training centre. "In case of bad weather, the pilot does not have to get into the real aircraft, but can practice here, for example, emergency or other procedures. You can practice a lot of things on it, and it's right on site, so it can be used almost immediately," added CLV director Jaroslav Špaček.

As already mentioned, the key partner of the NG1 project was VR Group, a company that has been developing and producing simulation technologies for a long time, and the delivery of the new Full Mission simulator for Skyfox aircraft is another significant milestone for this company. In addition to Pardubice, Full Mission simulators have already been delivered to other customers. "VR Group has already delivered the third L-39NG simulator. After the Vietnamese customer and the Hungarian customer, it was the turn of LOM PRAHA. The simulator is unique and certified," said Vít Ryška, Chairman of the Board of VR Group. Thanks to the certification, the entire cockpit must be absolutely faithful, including all the instrumentation. "All the technology that is included in the cockpit must be consistent with the real aircraft. The simulator contains real aircraft components and software, forming a unified system certified as an FTD2 simulator," Ryška said.

However, some modifications had to be made to match the simulation environment. "Of course, we modify the software and design the cabin ourselves. We make it ourselves. We get the supporting documentation from the aircraft manufacturer and we develop the cabin ourselves. It's our big competitive advantage that all the software, all the mechanical work, the design and the electronic development is done by our company. This allows us to remain independent of external suppliers," revealed Vít Ryška.

The key customers of VR Group include, of course, the Army of the Czech Republic. "The Army of the Czech Republic is a strategic partner. We are part of LOM PRAHA and we complement the training portfolio with our simulation systems. We also do a number of other orders for the army. Now we are developing a constructive simulation system. We also have shooting simulators, here we provide simulation systems for CLV Pardubice. 80 to 90 percent of the training simulation systems from the Czech Army are the work of VR Group," Ryška revealed.

It should be recalled that VR Group, in addition to flight simulators, also develops and produces simulators for ground forces. "It's certainly one of the portfolios we have been involved in for a long time. The so-called Virtual Maintenance is the training of technicians and teaching of operators in a 3D virtual reality environment," said Vít Ryška, chairman of the board of VR Group.

The opening of the new simulation centre, where a second Full Mission simulator is expected to be put into operation in the future, creates new potential for the state enterprise LOM PRAHA. "It is an extension of our capabilities. We are truly becoming a European leader and we are focusing on offering comprehensive flight training. This means not only practical training in the air, but also theory and, of course, simulations. And this comprehensive package is then interesting not only for our army, but also for potential foreign customers," revealed LOM PRAHA Director Jiří Protiva.

The inclusion of the L-39 Skyfox aircraft in the CLV fleet in Pardubice is also an important moment for the completion of the training chain regarding the F-35 aircraft. "The Skyfox aircraft are another piece in the mosaic of training pilots for future F-35 piloting, and simulations play a crucial role not only in the L-39 Skyfox aircraft training, but will also be a key part of the F-35 fighter training on military bases," Protiva told our editorial team.

However, the new facility will not only provide this type of training, its use is much broader. "Today's opening of the simulation centre is just the beginning. We currently have an L-39NG simulator implemented here, including the associated simulation technology. In the future, we will move simulators for Enstrom and Mi-17 helicopters here, as well as a simulator for the new Zlin training helicopters. And the building has further development potential, for example, to create simulation facilities for various electronic warfare scenarios," said Jiří Protiva, adding that LOM PRAHA is adaptable to the planned transition to fifth-generation aircraft. "And electronic warfare is something we want to develop further in this simulation hall, because it will be needed for piloting the F-35," revealed the director of the state enterprise.

We were interested in how the cooperation with Lockheed Martin – the manufacturer of the F-35 aircraft – is currently developing and whether we will see some type of simulator for the F-35 aircraft in the future in the Pardubice CLV. "The state enterprise LOM PRAHA was the first Czech entity to sign an industrial agreement with Lockheed Martin. At this time, discussions are underway on how to adapt the training in the best and most efficient way so that pilots can go straight from the L-39 Skyfox to the F-35. Of course, in the future, CLV may also have some simpler simulators for the F-35 so that it is incorporated into the proper training process for the Czech Army," concluded Jiří Protiva, director of the state enterprise LOM PRAHA.