Since the early days of counterinsurgency fighting in Iraq, the Army and the Marine Corps have built dozens of training facilities in the United States designed to simulate urban combat. Officials often have boasted that these sites offer troops a realistic war-like experience before they deploy.
But these sites still leave much to be desired, said Paul W. Mayberry, deputy undersecretary of defense for readiness.
“There has been a proliferation of urban facilities, too many of inferior quality,” Mayberry told a training industry conference. While some training ranges do better at simulating war, he said, many lack the necessary complexity and diversity of combat scenarios.
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