Upgraded Simulators for German Navy NH90 NFH Sea Lion Helicopters

Rheinmetall Electronics GmbH has been awarded a follow-on contract by partner company Reiser Simulation und Training GmbH (RST) to upgrade the Asterion cockpit trainer for the NH90 NFH Sea Lion naval helicopter maintenance training rig supplied by RST for the German Navy Air Station in Nordholz. 

These simulators enable maintenance personnel of the Bundeswehr’s Naval Air Squadron 5 to carry out realistic maintenance and repair operations. This upgrade will make it possible for Navy personnel to train for the latest configuration of the NH90 NFH Sea Lion naval helicopter. It therefore marks an important milestone for use of the maintenance training rig in combination with the integrated ‘Functional Cockpit’ Asterion cockpit trainer for the German Navy’s NH90 NFH.

Final acceptance testing of the first Asterion cockpit trainer for the Army version of NH90 TTH took place in December 2016. This simulator was then transferred to the international helicopter training center at Faßberg in Lower Saxony. In August 2017, Rheinmetall received an order to further develop its Asterion training simulation software and to integrate it into RST’s Maintenance Training Rig (MTR). The MTR replicates all relevant functions for the first expansion phase of the German Navy’s new NH90 NFH Sea Lion multipurpose helicopter in Nordholz.

Aided by data collected from the German Navy’s real helicopters, Rheinmetall will now adapt the software to the current configuration of the NH90 helicopter and integrate it into the Functional Cockpit. This will ensure that the behavior of the training asset is identical to that of the original equipment, a vital prerequisite for effective instruction and training of maintenance and repair personnel.

The company hopes the simulators will be completely modernized by 2024.