VirTra Inc (VTSI)

[NYPharmer1]

Police Department installs firearms simulator

The Henry County Police Department has completed the installation of a new firearms simulator at the McDonough headquarters.

“This is going to really benefit us tremendously because of the budget cuts that the Police had to make on the ammunition used at the range,” said Henry County Commission Chairman Elizabeth “B.J.” Mathis. “This will help our officers stay very well trained. Hopefully they will never have to use deadly force, but we certainly want them to know what they are doing if they have to.”

An improvement over the department’s single screen simulator, this simulator allows users to experience a 180-degree immersive virtual reality that features precision-tracking to promote situational awareness, improved use-of-force judgment and more accurate marksmanship for two trainees simultaneously. It comes complete with three massive projection screens, realistic-feeling tetherless weapons, and belts that allow participants to feel when they have been hit, which dramatically enhances the training value of the simulator by creating a more realistic training environment.

The simulator does not replace a firing range for the required annual qualifications of Henry County police officers.

The VirTra Systems training simulator cost $95,993 and was funded entirely through the Edward Byrne Memorial Justice Assistance Grant. No matching funds were required. The simulator training room, which was retrofitted with a trainer control room and blacked-out to allow for optimal equipment performance, cost $60,000 and was paid for out of the department’s asset forfeiture and seized funds account.