Document created: 18 August 03
Air University Review, January-February 1975

One of the most important precepts of our national policy is survivability. Our ability to survive is based on the concept of preparedness. Preparedness means more than surmounting new and unexpected challenges by developing creative responses. The idea of preparedness also implies forethought and flexibility; if they are absent, a nation cannot be considered prepared to exist in today's dynamic world. Preparedness, simply stated, is to learn from the past and plan for the future.

With these thoughts in mind, the 453d Flying Training Squadron, part of the 323d flying Training Wing, at Mather Air Force Base, California, has implemented an imaginative training program designed to prepare rated navigators as electronic warfare officers (EWO) for the challenges of today and the future. The main purpose of this program is to produce versatile, well-rounded Air Force officers specially trained to perform as combat aircrew members. The program is rooted in the lessons learned in Southeast Asia and the recent Middle East Yom Kippur conflict, as well as advances made in technology, management, and education.

Today's EWO is prepared to meet the unexpected and survive. The importance of the program is demonstrated by the current emphasis on electronic warfare, which exists even at the highest levels of government, and by the substantial amount of money presently being spent on EW research and development, equipment, and training. Before describing the new program, let's take a look at the old program for comparison.

EWO trainees for the past several years have been exposed to a variety of topics and training activities designed to prepare them for an active role in conventional and nuclear warfare. The course of instruction was broken into three main phases: fundamentals of electronics, electronic warfare support measures (ESM), and electronic countermeasures (ECM).

In electronic fundamentals, the student obtained the necessary background, vocabulary, and knowledge of equipment operation necessary for the successful completion of the two later phases.

In ESM, the students participated in an integrated academic, flying, and simulator program that taught radar operating parameters, crew coordination procedures, and other skills required in the performance of airborne electronic reconnaissance. ESM simulator training took place in the ALQ-T3 RB-47H electronic reconnaissance simulator.

In the third phase, the students changed this emphasis and began their education in the arts of ECM. During this phase, student participation in academics, flying, and simulators prepared them to counter electronic threats successfully. ECM simulator training was conducted in the ALQ-T4 B-52H £CM simulator. Both the TS and T4 simulators used in the program are over ten years old.

ESM and EGM flying training were conducted in the venerable ET-29D aircraft. The entire training program required approximately seven months to complete and included 463 hours of academics, 13 flights, and 20 simulator missions.

The T3 and T4 simulators established ATC's experience in using simulators to support EW training. These simulators adequately fulfilled their original intent-to simulate and support EW training for a particular airframe number. They also demonstrated, by a lack of many necessary training features, just how important these features are in meeting future simulator requirements. Any new electronic warfare simulator must incorporate desired training features and capabilities that overcome TS and T4 simulator inadequacies.

The flying training potion of the old syllabus used twenty-year-old ET-29 aircraft. These airplanes were extremely weather-sensitive and subject to a variety of maintenance problems. Depending on the route flown and the time of day, the students were presented with a nonstandard radar environment.

The new $5.8 million AN/ALQ-T5 simulator for electronic warfare training (SEWT, pronounced "suit") provides the means for applying a new simulator training concept. This training concept can be simply stated as follows: to train rated navigators in the basic electronic warfare knowledge and skills, not limited to one or two weapon systems but to a wide application in many weapon systems and electronic warfare tactical environments. This concept is being accomplished by generalizing the content of simulator missions and by placing the students in a dynamic signal/countermeasures equipment environment capable of responding in depth to student progress toward desired operator skill levels.

The T5 is configured as a self-paced teaching machine that will provide students with objective evaluations and immediate feedback. It will also reduce the instructor-to-student ratio, thereby reducing manpower requirements. The SEWT has a designed life expectancy of ten years and will result in an annual cost savings of $1.7 million.

Development of the SEWT began in June 1967 when Air Training Command (ATC) submitted a Required Operational Capability (ROC) to Headquarters USAF. In May 1970, Aeronautical Systems Division of Air Force Systems Command awarded the SEWT contract to the AAI Corporation, located near Baltimore, Maryland.

In developing the SEWT, the contractor pushed the state of the art in both hardware and software design. Three years later in-plant tests were completed and delivery was made to the 453d Flying Training Squadron. Air Force in-place acceptance tests were completed in October 1973, and the first SEWT-supported class entered training in mid-January 1974.

The arrival of the SEWT provides the capability for eight students to "fly" independently eight separate and different "missions" simultaneously. Each of the eight student stations is an enclosed booth complete with EW equipment, warning receivers, a navigational panel, and communications equipment needed to complete each type of mission. Students will now be able to learn in one trainer the four different types of electronic warfare missions: electronic warfare support measures, electronic countermeasures, strike support, and Wild Weasel* missions. This capability far exceeds that of the simulators previously employed in the training program.

*The name designating electronically equipped USAF fighters that effectively counter surface-to-air missiles by locating and killing the SAM sites.

Available in each station is a student data terminal (SDT), which includes a keyboard, a cathode-ray tube (CRT) for alphanumeric displays, and a mission status panel. The SDT allows the students to interact with the computer for computer-assisted instruction during equipment, procedure, and tactics laboratory sessions. The SDT also provides for student-trainer interaction, through evaluation of student responses and reactions, and for reinstruction of desired tasks if the evaluations are failed.

The SEWT contains two evaluation systems: automatic and scripted. The automatic evaluation system was designed to be used primarily during electronic reconnaissance labs or missions. When an error is detected, the system automatically displays an error message providing immediate feedback to the student, thus preventing him from learning an incorrect behavior pattern.

The second type of evaluation system is scripted by a programmer into a lab or mission. Four types of scripted evaluations are available, and they are used (1) to check actions required in a desired sequence--such as a checklist; (2) to make instantaneous evaluations of actions required in a short period of time; (3) to evaluate any student actions that may be prohibited--such as crew calls at the wrong time; and (4) to evaluate a collection of desired actions that occur over an extended period of time--such as completion of a number of assigned tasks. Failure of scripted evaluations will also provide the student with immediate feedback through error messages designed to promote desired learning outcomes.

The use of these evaluation systems will greatly reduce the instructor-to-student ratio. The new SEWT syllabus calls for a 1:4 instructor-to-student ratio, plus a console operator for training labs and missions. Trainer check missions will require only a 1:8 instructor-to-student ratio. As an added feature, the use of the T5 evaluation systems will increase the objectivity in student grading and produce a standardized student evaluation.

At the conclusion of each lab or mission, a postmission print-out is automatically available for students and instructors to review. Each print-out shows a computer overall grade and a list of the grades earned by the student from each of seven grading categories as defined in lab or mission development. A detailed print-out of failed evaluations is also available. From these postmission print-outs instructors are able to critique a student's performance, identify his weak areas, and recommend corrective action if necessary.

The monitoring functions for the eight student stations are handled by one instructor/console operator. The console contains a cathode-ray tube whose alphanumeric and graphic displays allow the console operator to assess the progress and problems of each mission and student. Once a console operator identifies a student with a problem, he may offer instruction from the console while he monitors the student's actions on the CRT, or he may send a ratio instructor into the student’s booth. This feature is a great improvement over the previous training program, where an instructor/console operator could monitor only one student. Other console controls enable the operator to monitor any or all interphone and radio communications and introduce real-time changes into the training lab or mission.

The heart of this one-of-a-kind trainer is a digital computer-controlled signal generation system. This signal generation system can simulate all known radio frequency signals. Up to 63 emitter signals or 126 radio frequency (RF) sources may be simulated on the air at any one time to produce a realistic EW environment. This capability is more than twice the signal-generating capacity of the analog computer-controlled T3 and T4 simulators. It is under the control of a real-time program capable of monitoring and updating the eight student stations and the instructor's console once every second. Additionally SEWT signals will automatically come on and go down as the student's aircraft flies into and out of range of each emitter. Signal power levels will also vary with the range and altitude of the aircraft to the emitter site. Digital operation was selected over analog operation because of its greater capacity to handle more complex problems with greater accuracy at faster speeds in less physical area.

SEWT missions may be programmed to operate in any part of the world. Each mission can operate in a large gaming area: 2000 nm X 2000 nm X 100,000 feet. Within this area, the students may fly at any speed up to 2000 knots. Three different types of present-day aircraft flight characteristics have been programmed to be used for the students' aircraft, and others may be scripted as desired. Multiple aircraft simulation for each mission is also available; as many as five other aircraft may be simulated at one time to fly as either friendly or hostile aircraft. These aircraft may have the same or five different aircraft flight characteristics. The availability of these different flight characteristics greatly enhances the flexibility and realistic presentation of the training program.

An additional feature of the SEWT is its short "turnaround" time between labs or missions. The complete changeover can be accomplished by the console operator and a few maintenance personnel in less than 15 minutes. This desirable feature leads to more efficient use of the T5 trainer. It also eliminates the previous scheduling problems that were caused by the amount of time required for maintenance personnel to complete signal generation and mission changeover in the T3 and T4 simulators.

Based on the Instructional System Development (ISD) approach, a new no-fly SEWT syllabus has been developed for use with the T5. This syllabus shortens the course from 132 training days (28 calendar weeks) to 115 training days (25 calendar weeks) as the student progresses through a total of 46 labs and missions in the T4 and T5 trainers. Eleven labs and 22 T5 missions along with five labs and eight T4 missions make up the 135 hours the students spend in the simulators. Each lab or mission is designed to present the student with progressively increased difficulty. Most labs and missions are scheduled for a three-hour period, which allows for a two-hour programmed lab or mission to be completed and provides additional time for any necessary reinstruction.

The fact that the electronic warfare officer training program is going "no fly" should have little or no effect on the individual student's "fly-ability" when he arrives at his operational assignment. Each student in the school is a rated navigator when he arrives for electronic warfare training, and he therefore has already demonstrated his ability to adapt to the stresses of flight.

Under the SEWT syllabus, electronic warfare students will fly five proficiency flights as navigators, thus maintaining those aspects of navigational skills required for their new primary AFSC.

The SEWT trainer represents a new concept in EW training and training equipment. With its high degree of flexibility, the trainer can be programmed to simulate new radar signals as soon as they are discovered and can be programmed to go almost anywhere and do almost anything within the realm of electronic warfare. This flexibility is the very heart of preparedness. Because of SEWT, today's electronic warfare officer is ready for tomorrow and is more highly qualified and versatile than ever before. Because of this, our nation stands that much further ahead in its goal of survivability.

Captain David B. Withers (B. A., Florida Presbyterian College) is an electronic warfare instructor, 453d Flying Training Squadron, Mather AFB, California. He served a tour in Southeast Asia, flying 120 combat missions in the EB-66, and was credited with several updates to the SEA radar order of battle. He presently teaches radar system, transmission and reception, and reconnaissance techniques.

Captain Stephen A. Leishman (M. B. A., Inter-American University) is a simulator instructional systems designer and an instructor electronic warfare officer with the 453d Flying Training Squadron, Mather AFB, California. Prior to his current assignment he served as a B-52 electronic warfare officer and as an EB-66C instructor crew leader. Captain Leishman has published articles in The Navigator and Electronic Warfare magazines.