Orlando, Fla. – September 19, 2026 -- BAE Systems OneArc has been awarded an Other Transaction Agreement contract by the U.S. Army to install its Embedded Collective Training (ECT) system on a platoon of combat vehicles at Fort Hood, Texas, marking the first commercially available embedded trainer fitted directly into a fielded U.S. Army combat vehicle.
Army tests embedded trainer under Force Development Innovation & Assessment program
The integration is part of the Army's Force Development Innovation & Assessment (FDIA) initiative, which will have crews train on the full range of precision gunnery progression tasks using the vehicle's own platform controls and procedures, rather than external simulators. The program covers weapon systems operation, crew-level qualification and validation of the embedded training capability on an operational combat platform.
System addresses years-long gap between fielding new equipment and combat readiness
Sergeant First Class Patrick Muir, 1st Cavalry Division Standardization Master Gunner, said the ECT gives commanders a single, adaptable system to build and sustain readiness across geographically dispersed locations without the cost and infrastructure burden of dedicated training facilities. The Army has historically waited years after fielding a new platform before embedded training tools became available, forcing units onto live-fire ranges or standalone simulators disconnected from actual crew stations.
BAE Systems OneArc pitches training as a built-in capability, not a follow-on program
Rahul Thakkar, President of BAE Systems OneArc, said integrating a commercial embedded trainer onto a combat platform already in service gives the Army a repeatable model for pairing new equipment with training from day one. The company frames the shift as moving training from a pre-deployment activity to a permanent onboard capability, aligning with FDIA's objective of validating faster, integrated modernization approaches.
Kits designed to scale from individual crews to platoon-level and unmanned platforms
The ECT kits are built to expand beyond single-crew training into platoon-level collective training and distributed tactical maneuver exercises in later phases. BAE Systems OneArc said the approach extends to other ground platforms, both crewed and uncrewed, offering the Army a common embedded-training path across its broader ecosystem of capabilities and partners. The solution supports the Army's commercial-first procurement approach, aiming to compress the acquisition-to-training timeline from years to months.