Navy showcases Strike Group mixed-reality experience at Nease High School

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The U.S. Navy recently showcased its new Strike Group multi-scenario, mobile mixed-reality experience, designed to demonstrate the breadth and depth of Navy STEM careers. The showcase was held Monday, Jan. 13, and Tuesday, Jan. 14, at Nease High School.

Through leading-edge mixed reality, the Strike Group provides students with a fully immersive, hands-on look into the technology and teamwork that are central to every role in the Navy.

“From the depths of the sea to the heights of the stars, America’s Navy is the most highly skilled, technologically advanced military force in the world,” said Rear Admiral James P. Waters, commander, Navy Recruiting Command. “It is important for Nease High students to understand that a STEM career in the Navy provides a life-changing experience filled with adventure, teamwork, and support. The Strike Group brings all these aspects to life in the most realistic ways possible.”

The Strike Group comprises three distinctive, interactive challenges and experiences:

All Hands

Players test their skills on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier in a five-person mixed-reality game. Participants donned a Meta Quest 3 headset and were transported out to the USS Gerald R. Ford, where they teamed up to launch an F-35C Lightning II jet.

Working together in different roles — from loading fuel to flying helicopters to piloting the aircraft itself — each player was immersed in the experience of what it is like to serve aboard an aircraft carrier and how their efforts influence a Navy mission.

Support

The Navy conducts humanitarian missions around the globe through a variety of ship platforms and communities. Participants navigated an interactive map of the world with a range of Navy ships and vehicles to explore the breadth and depth of these operations at strategic, geographic locations.

Each vehicle triggered an educational experience, not only about the mission, but also about the potential careers to help provide aid to communities worldwide.

Fly

Players experienced Naval aviation like never before. This full-motion flight simulator dropped participants into the cockpit of an F-35C Lightning II, where they were launched from an aircraft carrier with their wingman on a training mission.

With some up-front tutorials, users learned to maneuver the aircraft prior to engaging in a mission to drop munitions on a practice target and then landed safely back on the carrier.

Why it is called the Strike Group

The new Strike Group interactive experience is named after the Navy’s forward deployment formation known as a carrier strike group, which is comprised of roughly 7,500 personnel, one aircraft carrier with an air wing of 65 to 70 aircraft, two guided missile cruisers, two anti-aircraft warships, and one to two anti-submarine destroyers.

Carrier strike groups epitomize the leading-edge technology and teamwork that are synonymous with Navy life. The Navy currently maintains 11 carrier strike groups.