In the evolving landscape of military preparedness, VirTra’s V-Marksmanship® emerges as a leading solution. This software that is part of all VirTra simulators is a comprehensive platform that enhances marksmanship training through immersive, customizable, and ballistically accurate simulations.

Customizable Training Environments

V-Marksmanship® offers unparalleled flexibility in creating diverse training scenarios. Instructors can tailor environments by adjusting:​

  • Weather Conditions: Simulate various climates, from rain and fog to different wind conditions, to prepare soldiers for any operational environment.​
  • Time of Day: Train under varying light conditions, including dawn, dusk, or nighttime to enhance adaptability.​
  • Target Configuration: Deploy an unlimited number of targets, including paper, steel, moving, and non-moving types, positioned at varying distances and orientations.​

This level of customization ensures that each training session can be uniquely tailored to meet specific operational requirements and training objectives. Users will be prepared for numerous possibilities.

Train with your own Weapon

To bridge the gap between simulation and live-fire exercises, VirTra provides drop-in laser recoil kits compatible with various firearms. These kits allow trainees to use their actual duty weapons within the simulation, providing authentic recoil and weapon handling experiences. The integration of these kits ensures that the skills developed during simulation are directly transferable to real-world scenarios.

To deliver authentic recoil feedback, the recoil kits rely on CO₂-powered magazines. These magazines are designed to mimic end-of-magazine scenarios and allow instructors to introduce malfunctions that trainees must diagnose and resolve. They are also weighted to closely match the feel of a real magazine.

Thorough Debrief and Performance Analysis

As with scenarios, marksmanship performance can be thoroughly reviewed at any time. Every trainee’s shot placement is easily identified, showing who fired which shot and when.

Debrief is further facilitated through the Trainee Monitoring and Recording (TMaR) system. This hardware and software combo enables instructors to review trainees’ actions, including reaction times and decision-making processes, by recording and replaying simulation sessions. These sessions can be viewed immediately or saved for later.

 

For more information on how V-Marksmanship® can elevate your unit’s training capabilities, talk to a product specialist about setting up a demonstration.

In the realm of law enforcement and military simulation training, realism is paramount. This is why VirTra offers advanced recoil kits that transform standard service weapons into simulation-ready tools, providing high physical fidelity training experiences.

Recoil kits easily fit into a user’s duty weapon with no permanent modification required. You don’t have to be an engineer to do it – they can be installed in minutes with minimal tools. Once installed, all normal accessories like sights and holsters can still be utilized.

VirTra’s recoil kits are manufactured and designed at VirTra’s headquarters in Arizona – meaning they are entirely made in the USA.

Wide Range of Compatible Firearms

VirTra’s recoil kits accommodate a broad range of firearms. Compatible models include:

  • Pistols: Beretta M9, Glock 17, 19, 22, Sig Sauer P226, Heckler & Koch P2000, Smith & Wesson MP, Walther P99.
  • Rifles: M16, AK-47, Heckler & Koch G36, MP5, UMP, CZ805 Bren, TAVOR X95, SIG MCX, among others.

This extensive compatibility ensures officers can train with their own duty weapon, eliminating training scars caused by unrealistic tools.

Used with CO2 Magazines

For the recoil kits to provide their realistic recoil response, CO2-operated magazines are required. These magazines can simulate end-of-magazine events as well as instructor-initiated malfunctions that the trainee must work through. They are weighted to provide the same feel as a real magazine.

The proprietary refill station allows for quick and easy CO2 refills, minimizing downtime between training sessions. This system is both cost-effective and environmentally friendly, reducing the need for disposable CO2 cartridges. Other options such as “green gas” can be flammable and dangerous, but VirTra uses food grade CO2 commonly used in soda machines around the world.

Safety

The weapon kits and CO2 delivery system provide a safety buffer as well. The kits preclude the loading of a live round into the weapon. This safety measure is key to keeping training environments as safe as possible, while still conducting highly representative training.

True-Fire Technology

A significant advancement in VirTra’s recoil kits is the incorporation of True-Fire technology. In January 2024, VirTra announced the release of its improved drop-in recoil kits that minimize false firing incidents. This feature ensures that shots are only registered when the trigger is intentionally pulled, reducing instances that can skew training evaluations. By preventing unintentional shot registration during actions like sliding, tapping, or dropping the weapon, True-Fire enhances the authenticity of training sessions.

Durability

To withstand the rigors of frequent training, VirTra’s recoil kits are fortified with ArmorGen™, a protective coating that minimizes wear and extends the lifespan of the equipment. This coating bonds at an atomic level, ensuring consistent performance and reliability throughout extensive training cycles.

To learn more about VirTra’s training options, contact a specialist.

Knowing if or when you should draw your firearm from your belt is very important when de-escalating a scene. Each call is unique, so knowing when to draw your gun versus when to pull your CEW device, or even just use your voice, is crucial.

Being able to train with your own duty equipment is crucial in establishing proprioception and developing the kinesthetic awareness of what it should feel like to draw our service weapon. Simply put, training with the weapon that you would be using on a call is the best way to refine your skills with that weapon.  However, when firing live guns in training, costs and cleanup can add up.

VirTra mitigates those additional costs and cleanup time with our laser firearms training simulators.

 

USING REAL FIREARMS

VirTra’s drop-in laser recoil kit converts a live firearm into a simulation-ready weapon with no permanent modification. Trainees can fire their real weapons in the VirTra simulators, gaining the experience of what it feels like to shoot their own firearm all in our immersive, true-to-life scenarios.

We have various laser firearms training simulator scenarios ranging from de-escalation to marksmanship. In the de-escalation scenarios, officers learn how and when firing their firearm is necessary. With extensive branching options, officers are able to learn the different de-escalation tactics that may or may not involve drawing their gun.

In the marksmanship courses, they can practice firearms fundamentals. With moving targets and selectable environmental conditions, officers can practice how to manipulate their firearm and develop a winning mindset.

Additional curriculums include Red Dot Optic Training & Sustainment, Weapon Transitions, Active Threat/ Active Killer, and more!

 

IMMERSIVE AND INTENSE

VirTra’s laser firearms training simulators range from one screen to five screens depending on what a department’s specific requirements are. For scenario-based firearm practice under full immersion, the V-180® or V-300®  would be best. For a smaller training environment that supports both marksmanship and use of force training, the V-ST PRO®  is a great option as well.

With minimized costs and cleanup and a revolutionary training system, VirTra is a valuable asset in police firearm training.

To hear more about our drop-in laser recoil kits and high fidelity simulators, contact a VirTra specialist.

Training needs to be realistic. It’s as simple as that.

However, training needs to also be accomplished in both short and long periods of time, be adaptable to the department’s policies and fit in classrooms. As such, a department’s best solution is simulation training. VirTra offers multiple simulators—complete with a different number of screens and footprint—so departments can choose the best option for them.

Best of all, the training stays realistic by allowing officers to train with their service firearms. To keep training safe, secure and to work with the simulator, officers forgo blanks or FX marking cartridges and instead install a drop-in laser recoil kit into the barrel and CO2 magazine into their magazine well.

Due to the nature of VirTra’s recoil kit design, this is not a permanent modification. Meaning, after training, officers simply remove the drop-in laser recoil kit and can again utilize their firearm in the field.

Don’t just take our word for it. VirTra prides ourselves in being able to show what we preach.

Watch how easy it is to install these kits in the video below!

To learn more about the types of drop-in laser recoil kits and how these revolutionize simulation training, contact a VirTra specialist.

Train hard, train smart, train safely with VirTra.

VirTra customers may notice their simulation training accessories include a small patent number and information printed on the device. This is because VirTra has gone through great lengths to patent-protect many of our training accessories.

After all, VirTra helped develop the use of force training simulation industry, shaping it into what it is today. We are proud of the work we have done, the miles we have paved and the technology that has allowed us to accomplish this feat.

Since we have worked so hard to make simulation training so state-of-the-art, realistic and valuable, VirTra decided to patent protect our products to ensure our training “secret sauce” remains with us.

VirTra’s patents currently apply to three training accessories: the Tetherless Drop-In Recoil Kits, Threat-Fire® and Axon TASER® training cartridges—though more accessories may be added in the future.

Patented Simulation Products

• Tetherless Drop-In Recoil Kits—Personal duty pistols and rifles can easily be converted into simulation-ready weapons with no permanent modification required. Rifle kits support semi- and full-auto fire, while pistol kits operate at the correct cyclical rate.
• Threat-Fire®— The Threat-Fire accessory enhances training by bringing real-life consequences into the simulation. This product delivers an electric impulse that simulates consequence actions, including: gunfire, explosions and dog attacks.
• TASER® training cartridges—Real Axon X2 and X26P TASER®s are outfitted with VirTra’s training cartridges, allowing them to function in a simulator. Upon deploying, characters on screen react accordingly and realistically.

The entire list of patent products and numbers can be found here: VirTra’s Patent Page.

For more information on VirTra’s Patented Products and how these accessories can further increase your training simulator’s abilities, contact a VirTra representative.

*AXON ,TASER, X2 and X26P are registered trademarks of AXON ENTERPRISE, INC which can be referenced at www.TASER.com/legal

Police academies and departments across the nation utilize a wide variety of methods and strategies to train new law enforcement officers. This can consist of roleplaying, lectures, trips to the range and so forth.

While each form of training has its benefits, they all fall short when utilized alone or siloed. This is because many training methods cannot account for the unpredictability officers will experience in the field, nor do they realistically immerse the trainees in the given scenario. This is why VirTra’s immersive simulators, such as the VirTra 300-degree judgmental use of force law enforcement simulator, provides a far more effective training.

The immerse quality is more than the physical immersion, though the V-300’s five screens do physically immerse trainees and officers, once they step into the simulator. Rather, immersion is taken to the next level with surround sound audio and integrated and interactive characters on each screen. In addition to this are the accessories: the Threat-Fire® provides real-life consequences and stress inoculation while VirTra’s recoil kits and CO2 magazines allow officers to utilize their personal firearms within the simulator. Instructors can take advantage of these immersive qualities to train officers in a variety of real-life situations from a safe, controlled and realistic environment.

Working Through Uncertainty

Law enforcement officials must work with unprecedented levels of environmental and situational unpredictability. After all, it’s a part of the job. While it is possible to account for some of the variables an officer might face, it is impossible to account for every variable in every situation, every day.

While lectures are important—after all, discussing the correct order of events provides direction and understanding—it cannot be the only form of training. Instructors can take training to the next level with roleplaying, though going through a scripted situation can only provide so much additional training. Simply put, there are no traditional teaching methods that can best prepare officers for the modern uncertainty they could face at any moment.

Why Scenario-Based Simulations

Even though there is a time and place for lecture-based and scenario-based training, trainees must train with immersive simulators to gain the best possible experience with ever changing outcomes in the moment based on the actions and reactions of the students. VirTra combines state-of-the-art technologies, certified curriculum and professional research to create a highly realistic training environment that increases and transfers skills to the field.

Instead of being told how to work through scenarios, trainees are placed in the middle of any given situation. The scenario begins with a voiceover of the police call from dispatch, then opening on the scene. After, trainees must engage with the subject(s) and make decisions to discover the best possible outcome. Each VirTra judgmental scenario is equipped with extensive branching options, allowing the instructor to choose the path of the scenario, based on the trainee’s decisions and actions inside the simulator. Training after this manner allows officers to engage in the same scenario multiple times, but receive a different ending each time, based on mistakes or proper choices made.

Immerse in Realistic Scenarios

At the end of the day, immersive scenario-based training establishes critical thinking and potentially life-saving skills that lectures. By surrounding trainees visually and auditorily, officers treat the training more seriously and find themselves engrossed in the situation.

Though VirTra’s simulators cannot completely replace other forms of training—such as live fire—it complements these skills and provides a foundation for an officer to build off of.

One of the most beneficial parts of the VirTra simulators is the debrief ability. After the scenario ends, instructors and trainees can replay the scenario and see what the trainee did correctly or mistakes that could have been avoided. The real-time play back, Picture-in-Picture playback videos and after-action provides extra training elaboration. No traditional method of training provides this debriefing opportunity or is as effective at helping officers understand the consequences of their actions.

VirTra’s immersive judgmental use of force simulator is a critical component of any department’s training program. Help your officers learn, build and maintain skills in the most realistic way possible with this immersive technology. To learn more, contact a VirTra specialist.