Lithuania buys Saab's RBS 70 simulators

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13 (UPI) -- Lithuania has placed an order for Saab-made RBS 70 simulators in a move the company says will enhance the country's air defense capabilities.

The RBS 70 is a portable air defense system used for anti-aircraft warfare. Lithuania has been procuring the systems since 2004. Under the new contract, Saab says the country will be more equipped to operate the devices.

"The Lithuanian Armed Forces will have a significantly improved training capability with this integration," Saab missile systems marketing chief Michael Höglund said in a press release. "The 3D maps developed by our local partner BPTI gives them a realistic training environment. They can then practice their deployment and engagement of targets in an exact 'virtual' replication of the real world environment that they operate in."

Saab officials went on to explain the RBS 70 simulators will be used to train Lithuanian soldiers for engaging difficult targets using a PC-based simulator. The software allows instructors to simulate a variety of aerial threats with various kinds of targets.

Under the contract, Saab will work with the Lithuania-based Baltic Institute of Advanced Technology to integrated customized 3D maps into the simulators. Deliveries are expected to begin in 2018.