The UK Royal Air Force (RAF) has completed a series of flight trials using Advanced Tactical Augmented Reality Systems (ATARS) technology developed by Red 6. The activity was performed using a BAE Systems Hawk T2 advanced jet trainer operating from the service’s Valley base on Anglesey, north Wales.
“Supported by Red 6 staff, pilots were immersed in scenarios to assess the viability of augmented reality technology,” says the RAF, which is exploring the potential of such equipment for use as part of its future flight training system.
“ATARS enables pilots to identify, engage and defeat virtual adversaries programmed to act and react as a pilot would experience in hostile combat, and cooperate with synthetic support aircraft whilst airborne,” the RAF says.
The service says it is exploring whether technology such as ATARS could enable it to “improve training quality, increase throughput and lower essential overheads like aircraft, airspace and instructors”.
Plans for the trial activity were announced in July 2024, with BAE acting as prime contractor for the work.
Forming part of the UK’s current Military Flying Training System, the RAF’s 28-strong fleet of Hawk T2s is officially scheduled to remain in use until late next decade, but appears likely to leave use sooner due to poor availability rates caused by the type’s Rolls-Royce/Safran-produced Adour engine.
Speaking late last year, RAF chief of the air staff Air Chief Marshal Sir Richard Knighton commented: “I would like to replace Hawk T2 as soon as we can, in order to deliver a more relevant, more reliable training capacity.”
