ORLANDO, Fla., 6 April 2009. Cubic Simulation Systems will provide its Engagement Skills Trainer 2000 (EST 2000) to the U.S. Army. EST 2000 is a virtual training experience that allows soldiers to engage their foes on large, colorful projection screens using realistic simulated weapons ranging from pistols to grenade launchers.

The U.S. Army Program Executive Office, Simulation Training and Instrumentation Command (PEO STRI) ordered the EST 2000 systems. Validated by the U.S. Army Infantry School, EST 2000 teaches marksmanship skills, squad-level collective defense and judgmental "shoot-don't shoot" tactics, Cubic officials say. The system trains soldiers in the use of small arms, as well as the 50-caliber M-2 machine gun and the 40mm Mark-19 grenade launcher. EST 2000 allows soldiers to engage enemy targets as they move through virtual urban environment that replicates current combat conditions.

Under the award, Cubic's Simulation Systems Division, based in Orlando, Fla., will produce and manufacture the complete small arms training systems, which include realistic and robust weapons.

Cubic's EST 2000 system is used throughout the U.S. Army, U.S. Army National Guard, and the U.S. Army Reserve. More than 800 EST 2000 systems have been fielded to installations throughout the world, including the continental United States, Alaska, Hawaii, Korea, Germany, Afghanistan, Iraq, and Kuwait.