How Interconnected, Simulated Worlds Could Transform Military Training

Earlier this year, two Berkut 540 aircraft -- codenamed Red 1 and Red 2 -- raced down the runway of Santa Monica Airport and climbed into the California skies. As the two planes flew over Ventura County, a KC-46 Pegasus Tanker came into the pilots' view. The tanker flew adjacent to Red 1, and the pilot navigated into position so the KC-46 could refuel the aircraft while Red 2 observed. However, anyone looking up from the ground would have only seen two planes in the sky. The third plane that "refueled" Red 1 wasn't real -- it was generated using augmented reality.