Latest-Generation Laser Engagement System for US Army

U.S. Army Soldiers at the National Training Center at Fort Irwin, California, will begin training this year with a new and improved version of the U.S. military's laser engagement training system. The new MILES Individual Weapon System, or MILES IWS, is manufactured by Cubic Defense Applications, the defense systems business of Cubic Corporation and features lighter weight components to lighten the load of Soldiers on the move during combat training exercises.

Shipments of MILES IWS to Fort Irwin began in July and will continue through December. To date, 4,000 systems have been delivered. Fort Irwin is the first large-scale fielding to take place under Cubic's contract with the Program Executive Office for Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI). Ultimately, Fort Irwin will receive 14,000 systems.

Cubic is also under contract to deliver systems to Fort Bliss and Fort Hood in Texas, and to U.S. Air Force, U.S. Navy, U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Defense Threat Reduction Agency customers.

Cubic's first U.S. Army delivery of MILES IWS was to the Soldier Battle Lab at Fort Benning, Georgia, which conducted effectiveness and suitability testing on the system. A lab report issued earlier this year concluded, "Overall, the MILES IWS is more effective and suitable in a training environment than current MILES. The system requires less time to mount, less time to align, and maintains alignment resulting in more Soldier confidence and better use of training time..."

The report continues, "The MILES IWS provides more realism in training through more accuracy primarily attributed to alignment retention and weight reduction. The system provides Soldiers with a user friendly and rugged replacement for the current MILES."
Like its predecessor systems, Cubic's MILES IWS allows troops to train with actual weapons during force-on-force exercises. Cubic's laser transmitters and detectors are attached to the trainee's weapon, helmets and training harness. Tracking devices keep track of each trainee's position location, while other MILES IWS components provide real-time feedback on weapon engagements, and record the event for after-action review.

"Cubic is proud to deliver this greatly improved system to Fort Irwin, one of the nation's premier predeployment training sites," said Ray Barker, executive vice president for Business Development and Strategy for Cubic Defense Applications. "MILES IWS offers superior training over basic MILES and has long-term sustainability because it is easy to upgrade. It is interoperable with previous configurations of MILES and with the Initial Homestation Instrumentation Training System (I-HITS), the U.S. Army's new deployable combat training center. MILES IWS is giving the U.S. Army and PEO STRI good value now and into the future."

Cubic Defense Applications (CDA), one of Cubic Corporation's major segments, is a world leader in realistic combat training systems, mission support services and defense electronics. The corporation's other major segment, Cubic Transportation Systems, designs and manufactures automatic fare collection systems for public mass transit authorities.