The USAFA Military & Strategic Studies Department completed building this state-of-the-art laboratory, capable of closely replicating multiple real-world strategic environments, in summer 2010. The lab provides cadets and researchers opportunities to solve ill-defined problems, and work as diverse teams in conventional and irregular warfare environments.
The Mission: to develop strategic thinking and judgment for contemporary and future US Air Force operating environments.”
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The Vision: Optimize the cadet education experience through integrating capabilities across air, space, cyber and surface domains simultaneously simulated between USAFA educational labs. |
Goals
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Exposes USAFA cadets to an “operational environment,” providing opportunities to engage in planning, executing and analyzing current issues, problems, and processes through case studies.
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Familiarizes cadets with various threat environments and expand their cognitive abilities to prevail.
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Provides a venue for operationally relevant and intellectually rigorous cadet and faculty research
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Integrates with existing DFMI laboratories, other appropriate DF laboratories using current USAF software applications, for visualization of communication traffic and complexity and speed of operations
The CBL is used in all MSS courses. MSS Majors experience complex scenarios in multiple courses. This laboratory is available to other departments upon request.
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Facility Layout
Located in Fairchild Hall, the CBL has entrapment entrances that provide a realistic look and feel to all cadet experiences. The facility provides maximum flexibility to configure the space into multiple environments:
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An intricately designed video and computer network provides projection of any computer screen on wall-size displays
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Movable walls, portable partitions and configurable furniture allow up to 48 cadets to engage at one time, as well as small group participation of 2 – 4 cadets.
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24-station computer/video floor connections, hidden in raised floors, allows unlimited computer configuration systems designed to meet the needs of specific scenarios.
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Audio/Video interface between classrooms
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Designed to connect with other MSS Learning laboratories, the CBL brings tomorrow’s operations to cadets today and is designed to keep up with changing technology for decades to come.
Software Design
The CBL contains a stand-alone network that allows cadets to experience current operational software first hand. For example, using powerful, validated Government-Off-The-Shelf software, provided by Intelligent Software Solutions (ISS) and managed by the Air Force Research Lab, cadets experience relevant visualization and complexity opportunities requiring situational awareness, decision making, critical thinking and leadership.
SWIC closely replicates functions conducted in an Air Operations Center (AOC) as cadets plan and execute missions in the lab.
As in the Space Operations Education Lab (SOEL) Satellite Toolkit (STK) is used to interface space operations and computer imaging of simulated real-world events.
Computers in the lab are also configured with a variety of other software platforms such as , Windows Office, Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) and chat. As additional tools are discovered, they are easily implemented in the MSLL so that the laboratory can become whatever the faculty need as a timeless, ever adapting, learning environment.
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