Simulator takes officer training to new level

Police say their training opportunities in the Flathead Valley are about to enter a whole new era, with a use-of-force simulator and a 50-yard tactical shooting range in the works at Northwest Shooter.

In the simulator, officers will face off against digital bad guys who either agree to comply with their commands or don’t. Its many training scenarios could entail anything from a threat at a school to a domestic dispute or a traffic stop with an unruly driver or passenger.

Where a particular scenario goes from the initial confrontation depends not only on the officer’s actions, but the selected training program and even an operator outside. And the simulator’s bad guys can and will shoot back.

The new tactical rifle and pistol range will be large enough to pull in a police cruiser and strong enough to handle anything up to .50 caliber ammunition.

Stationary targets at the range will be able to rapidly flip to one side to present a thin profile and put time pressure on shooters. The range also will have four remote-control robots that are bulletproof to help challenge and even charge officers who must shoot them to make them stop.

“Once word gets out about the high quality of training this allows, I have a feeling it will bring in law enforcement from outside the area,” Kalispell Police Chief Roger Nasset said. “We are really excited about having a top-notch simulator and year-round range.”

Technology components related to the VirTra Systems simulator and the tactical range are being paid for with a $750,000 federal grant Kalispell was awarded in 2009. Northwest Shooter agreed to build and provide facilities for the simulator and indoor range. Both will be available to the public commercially at least on a limited basis.

The simulator should be running by March and the range open by June.

“The bottom line on all this is that our job is extremely litigious,” Nasset said about law enforcement’s need for the training facility. “The more training we can give our people in the field the better and more appropriate job they’ll do.”

The use-of-force simulator will be unlike anything else in the Flathead. It’s believed the only other system like it in Montana or the rest of the Pacific Northwest is at the Air National Guard base in Great Falls.

An array of high-definition screens gives officers inside a 300-degree field of view. A powerful amplifier and speakers provide realistic surround sound.

The simulator’s many scenarios are interactive and evolve based on an officer’s spoken commands and actions. They also can be quickly altered by an operator outside if the operator wants to drive home a point about what an officer should or should not be doing.

Officers inside will use real but disabled weapons including a pistol, rifle, shotgun and Taser. The guns are fitted with special infrared-emitting barrels to register hits with targets on screen and refillable carbon dioxide magazines that make the guns “kick” with every pull of the trigger.

“They’re sophisticated enough that we can even cause the rifles or handguns to jam so the officer has to take care of a malfunction while under fire,” said Bob Hughes, who launched Northwest Shooter with his son Jeff about 13 months ago.

And taking fire in the simulator will be a scary thing.

Officers wear a “threat-fire module” on their belt. If a perpetrator’s shot hits home, the module delivers an electric jolt strong enough to take an officer down to his knees.

“The company says it’s about like being hit by a live round with a vest on,” Hughes said.

Law enforcement agencies already have signed up about 250 officers to be trained with the simulator over the next year, Hughes said. That includes municipal police officers, sheriff’s deputies, Montana Highway Patrol troopers and U.S. Border Patrol and airport security agents.

The simulator’s use-of-force scenarios will not be available to the public. But the machine also offers about 100 different programs for people to learn how to shoot or practice marksmanship without having to buy ammunition.

Hughes said Northwest Shooter is eager to partner with Kalispell on the initiative and excited about what it will mean for the public and law enforcement.

“Not many businesses have an opportunity to directly affect quality of life here in the Flathead,” he said.

“We do four or five educational courses a month, and they’re always full. So there’s a big demand here in the valley for information and education on handguns. This will help us do that better, to say nothing of the benefit for law enforcement,” Hughes said. “It will provide a level of law enforcement training presently unavailable certainly anywhere else in the state.”