The Yokosuka Naval Base in Yokosuka, Japan is the center of operations for the U.S. Navy’s Seventh Fleet and is also now home to a brand new, $6.0 million state-of-the-art “battle lab.”

Set in a formerly abandoned bunker dug into the side of a hill, the facility was launched on Monday [URL=http://stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=69761]according to Stars and Stripes[/URL]. The inaugural simulation, dubbed Operation Coral Dagger, involved American and Australian forces maneuvering against a fictional foe called the Kamarians, an opposing force used in Australian military training.

The military publication called the exercise “a far more complex game than multinational forces had ever been able to play in Japan before Monday.” The simulator allows multi-national forces from all over the world to participate, whether they are on a ship, sitting in a flight simulator or parked in front of a computer.

The “battle lab” allows training to continue even when ships are docked for maintenance. Japan and other U.S. allies will be able to take part alongside the U.S. in future simulations. [URL=http://www.gamepolitics.com/2010/05/04/cutting-edge-%E2%80%9Cbattle-lab%E2%80%9D-opens-us-naval-base][B][COLOR=#8e0505]Read More[/COLOR][/B][/URL][URL=http://www.gamepolitics.com/2010/05/04/cutting-edge-%E2%80%9Cbattle-lab%E2%80%9D-opens-us-naval-base]read more[/URL]

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