Rheinmetall is participating, once again, at the Berlin Air Show (ILA 2012), which takes place 11-16 September at the Berlin ExpoCenter Airport.

Rheinmetall is showcasing its Advanced Network Trainer (ANTares) mobile tactical training system (photo) under the rubric of the Helicopter Training Alliance (HTA).

Housed in a 20-foot container, this versatile and flexibly deployable simulation system helps soldiers get ready for their missions, creating a challenging, highly realistic operating environment.

Along with crew coordination training, ANTares can be used to prepare entire units for deployed missions - even in the area of operations. Potential applications are by no means limited to flight simulations.

From transport helicopters and UAV ground control stations to main battle tanks and frigates, Rheinmetall’s modular cubicle concept enables networked joint tactical training of ground, air and naval forces, drawing on a vast variety of state-of-the-art weapons system simulations.

The simulation cubicles can be freely configured as a plug-and-play unit in containers; together they form the highly mobile ANTares training system. The ANTares containers can be transported to the area of operations by road, rail, air or sea.

The system also takes into account the need for an up-to-date database for effective mission rehearsal. Exploiting the latest reconnaissance data, the intelligent workflow of Rheinmetall’s Rapid Generation Database automatically creates the required 3-D virtual world in a matter of hours.

The advanced system design of the ANTares significantly reduces its lifecycle costs owing to systematic use of commercial off-the-shelf components, combining sensibly priced, flexibly configurable, requirement-oriented simulation with forward-looking expandability due to standard interfaces.

But simulation technology is not the only field in which Rheinmetall is present at ILA. Since 1 July 2012, Rheinmetall’s former Airborne Systems unit has formed part of the joint venture Rheinmetall Airborne Systems, having joined forces with Cassidian.

Rheinmetall Airborne Systems makes the KZO unmanned reconnaissance system, one of the world’s most advanced unmanned aerial vehicles. The German Bundeswehr has deployed it with great success in Afghanistan.

Rheinmetall Airborne Systems has its own stand at this year’s ILA in the UAS Plaza.