Virtual Reality Prepares Soldiers for Real War

Virtual Reality Prepares Soldiers for Real War: "Virtual Reality Prepares Soldiers for Real War
Young Warriors Say Video Shooter Games Helped Hone Their Skills
By Jose Antonio Vargas
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 14, 2006;

One blistering afternoon in Iraq, while fighting insurgents in the northern town of Mosul, Sgt. Sinque Swales opened fire with his .50-cal. That was only the second time, he says, that he ever shot an enemy. A human enemy.
'It felt like I was in a big video game. It didn't even faze me, shooting back. It was just natural instinct. Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! ' remembers Swales, a fast-talking, deep-voiced, barrel-chested 29-year-old from Chesterfield, Va. He was a combat engineer in Iraq for nearly a year.


Sgt. Sinque Swales, here playing 'SOCOM 3' at home in Chesterfield, Va., says shooting an insurgent in Iraq 'felt like I was in a big video game. It didn't even faze me.' (Jay Paul - Ftwp)


Sgt. Sinque Swales describes how simulated war video games, such as Medal of Honor, Ghost Recon, Halo 2 and Call of Duty, helped prepare him for using his weapon and fighting when he served as a combat engineer in Iraq.

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Homeland Security campaign schools kids in preparedness

USATODAY.com - Homeland Security campaign schools kids in preparedness

The Homeland Security Department on Thursday introduced a new emergency-preparedness campaign to teach 8-to-12-year-olds how to prepare for a terrorist attack, natural disaster or other emergency.
"Preparedness is not just a government challenge," Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff said during a visit to Andrew Jackson Language Academy, an elementary school in Chicago. "We all have to learn how to plan for the unexpected."

War games: Playing with fire

War games: Playing with fire: "War games: Playing with fire
Adults get a taste of what it's like to be in a war zone. The catch -- if you want to call it that? They can go home at the end of the day.
Aline Mendelsohn
Sentinel Staff Writer

January 24, 2006

The battle has begun, and insurgents in headdresses swarm the field while American soldiers in camouflage run across the tops of trailers. An explosion rattles in the distance, and in the village, an Iraqi civilian crouches over an injured man and pleads, 'Breathe, my friend.'

This is not a war thousands of miles away. This is a game of war, set in the safety of an Orlando industrial field and tractor-trailer storage yard near Silver Star Road.

This particular game is called Airsoft, a military simulation employing guns that shoot plastic pellets. A pastime that appeals primarily to twenty- to thirtysomething men, Airsoft offers elements of war re-enactment, paintball and live-action role-playing.

On Saturday, 200 participants, some from out of state, came together for Operation Sandstorm, hosted by Airsoft groups Mindgame Productions and Demo Airsoft. Players took the roles of Americans and insurgents, while actors posed as civilians.

Ultimately, the Americans won, as they outnumbered the insurgents 3-1."