Defense Blog – RE-liON

Training throughput: close the loop, then speed it up

c.haarmeijer — Thu, 03 Sep 2026 12:56:52 +0000

Training closer to where warfighters is already happening under very different conditions.

During Operation Althea, the Operator Kit was used at a Forward Operating Base, turning genuine operational downtime into training time.

In Ukraine, warfighters are training close to the front line, including in basements and air raid shelters, because access to fixed training centres is limited and those centres can themselves become targets.

Two very different environments, but the same principle: training does not always need to start with moving people to dedicated training infrastructure.

The next step is to scale what has worked elsewhere.

Over the past months, our conversations with armies across Europe have repeatedly come back to training capacity. Personnel is expected to grow, but instructor capacity and training infrastructure cannot be expanded at the same pace.

By the mid-2030s, the German Federal Armed Forces plans to grow from roughly 186,700 active soldiers today to 260,000 active plus 200,000 reservists: 460,000 in total. Recruiting is already turning around. But throughput is the problem: fixed instructors, fixed range slots, fixed cycle time, a pipe that doesn’t get wider just because more people are entering it.

RE-liON’s answer starts with the footprint most units already have. A training lane needs 1m × 2m per person: a corner of a barracks room, a classroom, a corridor. No range. No new construction.

Shift from “centralised training by default” to “decentralised unless.”

It continues with instructor time. Automating the fundamentals removes part of the day that was never really teaching, so one instructor can guide roughly 2.5× the trainees on the basics, and spend the time saved on the coaching only a person can give.

More repetitions only matter if they’re the right repetitions. On-demand access enables short, frequent training sessions instead of infrequent range weeks. It’s the same logic behind spaced repetition in any skill that decays without practice.

Every session also generates objective performance data, offloaded whenever there’s connectivity. Analysed at force-wide level, that data surfaces lessons that can be encoded directly into the next software update and pushed back to the field: a curriculum that improves continuously, not once every few years.

A warfighter should be able to receive an updated skill pack every six to eight weeks to keep up with changes in technology, threats, tactics and lessons identified.

First close the loop, then speed it up.

This spans foundational warfighter skills through small-unit level: shoot, including counter-UAS; move; communicate; and soon medicate and drone piloting.

This is what capability-as-a-service can enable: a continuous loop for building, updating and sustaining readiness.

And it is available off-the-shelf today, under a yearly service model. You can start now, instead of spending a year writing a program of requirements.

This artice accompanies the keynote at the Training & Education Conference of the German Federal Armed Forces in Hamburg at Sept, at 1st, 2026. “Rebuilding the Infrastructure of Readiness”

Download here

Release 3.11 – Lessons learned turn into capabilities

c.haarmeijer — Tue, 21 Jul 2026 13:17:12 +0000

Release 3.11 continues to expand the platform with improvements across Counter-UAS, Positive Identification, Virtual Shooting Range, Cognitive Agility Training, and Mission Planning.

The focus of this release is straightforward: increase operational realism, and improved training transfer.

Counter-UAS frontline insights transferred

Continuous feedback from Ukrainian units have driven the latest evolution for Counter-UAS capability.

Release 3.11 introduces more realistic drone behaviour, replacing predictable flight paths with operator-recorded mission profiles and dynamic flight characteristics.

Shotgun engagements have also been upgraded with realistic pellet ballistics, ammunition-specific spread patterns, trajectory visualisation during instruction, and enhanced After Action Review metrics.

Improved train track

The Positive Identification module now allows scenarios to be configured entirely from within the virtual environment, eliminating interruptions during training.

A redesigned identification mechanic, expanded performance metrics, and multilingual voice call-outs create a more natural and informative training experience.

The Virtual Shooting Range has been extended with continuous target distances out to 100 metres, longer Shoot/No-Shoot drills, and variable timing to support more progressive marksmanship and judgement training.

Mission planning

Release 3.11 marks a major milestone for the Mission Planning module.

The module now delivers higher-resolution terrain, significantly improved performance, and support for large operational areas with satellite imagery and accurate 3D elevation.

New MGRS coordinate and altitude overlays further support collaborative planning inside VR.

Platform-wide improvements

Alongside feature updates, Release 3.11 includes extensive performance optimisations, multiplayer improvements, hardware tracking refinements, expanded training metrics, and numerous stability fixes across the platform.

Greater realism

A completely refreshed character library introduces a wider range of military and civilian avatars throughout CAT, VSR, and PID, improving realism and reducing familiarity during threat identification exercises.

New urban floorplans further expand close-quarter scenarios.

Together, these improvements continue our mission of delivering scalable, operationally relevant readiness training for military and law enforcement organisations.

Access the technical datasheet in the Partner Portal.

Want to explore for your unit?

Mission planning in 3D: The difference between seeing and understanding

c.haarmeijer — Mon, 29 Jun 2026 10:44:44 +0000

A company commander, a helicopter pilot, a JTAC, a reconnaissance element, and an assault team all attend the same briefing and leave with a different picture of the mission.

It is the consequence of how humans process spatial information. Research into spatial problem-solving shows that 3D environments yield superior memory outcomes compared to 2D.

For decades, military planning has relied heavily on 2D maps, overlays, and PowerPoint briefings. These methods remain effective because they have proven their value over time.

The challenge appears when information moves beyond the planning cell.

Planners may spend hours analysing routes, studying terrain, discussing alternative courses of action, and identifying constraints. The final briefing compresses all that detail into a short session for a much larger audience. Every participant is expected to reconstruct the same operational picture, timelines, and synchronisation points in their own head.

Some can. Others cannot.

The difference remains invisible until execution, where adaptation becomes expensive and mistakes carry consequences.

The 3D advantage: Future Memory

A ridgeline on a map does not communicate dead ground. A route that appears clear on a slide may conceal a ditch, a wall, a fence line, or a slope that stops a vehicle. Every obstacle that lacks a symbol on the map goes unseen. In 3D, the terrain speaks for itself.

Changing the setup

Planning follows a pattern. Teams analyse the mission, develop courses of action, conduct a briefing, and move towards execution.

RE-liON’s Mission Planning Module supports that process seamlessly. Satellite and aerial imagery can be used alongside last-minute drone imagery and video feeds.

Academic research confirmed the value of this approach in land, air, and maritime exercises as early as 2018. What once required large compute infrastructures is now available in a deployable operator kit.

It enables teams to analyse mission objectives in a realistic three-dimensional representation of the operational environment. Routes, objectives, landing zones, engagement areas, terrain restrictions, and contingency options can be explored from the perspective of the people who will ultimately execute the mission.

Technology evolves. The purpose of planning does not.

Integrating cognition into human performance optimization for tactical units

c.haarmeijer — Wed, 17 Jun 2026 11:31:19 +0000

For decades, tactical performance has largely been developed through separate training disciplines.

Physical instructors build strength, endurance, and resilience. Marksmanship instructors focus on weapon handling. Tactical trainers develop procedures and communication. Psychologists address stress management and mental resilience.

Each discipline contributes to operational effectiveness. Yet operational performance does not occur in separate domains.

Operations happen when physical fatigue, cognitive load, time pressure, uncertainty, and communication demands interact simultaneously.

This is where Human Performance Optimization becomes relevant.

Readiness Is More Than Physical Preparation

Physical fitness remains a fundamental requirement for military and law enforcement personnel. Operators carry significant loads, work under prolonged stress, and are expected to make decisions in environments where mistakes have consequences.

However, physical capability alone does not determine performance.

An operator may possess excellent strength and endurance while still struggling with threat discrimination, prioritisation, communication, or decision-making under pressure. Equally, highly capable decision-makers can see their performance deteriorate when fatigue begins to affect attention, working memory, and judgement.

Operational readiness therefore extends beyond fitness. It includes the ability to maintain decision quality when physical and cognitive demands increase simultaneously.

The Limitation of Isolated Training

Most training systems still evaluate physical and cognitive performance separately.

Physical assessments measure variables such as strength, aerobic capacity, body composition, and endurance. Tactical evaluations often focus on procedural correctness, marksmanship, or mission outcomes. Cognitive assessments, where they exist, are frequently conducted in controlled environments detached from operational tasks.

The result is a transfer gap.

Performance is measured in isolation, while operational demands are experienced as an integrated system.

This creates a blind spot for instructors and commanders. They may know how an operator performs when fresh. They may know how an operator performs physically. What is often less visible is how judgement changes when fatigue accumulates.

Fatigue Influences Decision-Making

Physical fatigue affects more than muscles.

Research has consistently demonstrated that increasing physiological stress influences attention, reaction speed, working memory, situational awareness, and decision-making quality. The challenge is not simply that operators become slower. The challenge is that they may become less accurate while remaining confident in their decisions.

From a readiness perspective, this distinction matters.

The objective is not to identify who becomes tired. Every operator becomes tired.

The objective is to understand what fatigue does to judgement.

Profiling Before Programming

Effective Human Performance Optimization begins with understanding the individual operator.

Elite tactical units increasingly use profiling approaches that combine physiological, physical, role-specific, and cognitive assessments. These profiles provide a more complete understanding of strengths, weaknesses, and training priorities.

A comprehensive profile may include:

Bioenergetic characteristics such as aerobic and anaerobic capacity.
Biodynamic characteristics such as strength, power, movement quality, and load-bearing capability.
Position-specific requirements linked to operational roles.
Cognitive characteristics including decision speed, attention control, stress resilience, and situational awareness.

Without profiling, training remains largely based on assumptions. With profiling, training can be targeted to the individual rather than the average.

Integrating Physical and Cognitive Training

The most relevant development in Human Performance Optimization is not the addition of another assessment tool.

It is the integration of physical and cognitive systems.

A practical example is the combination of physical preload and decision training.

An operator first performs a defined physical task designed to create measurable physiological stress. This may involve repeated sprints, strength circuits, load carriage, or other operationally relevant activities.

Immediately afterwards, the operator enters a decision-making scenario.

The objective is not to create exhaustion. The objective is to expose how judgement, communication, prioritisation, and threat discrimination change when physiological stress is present.

This creates training conditions that are closer to operational reality than either physical training or cognitive training alone.

The Role of Immersion

Virtual reality is often discussed as a technology.

A more useful perspective is to view it as a training environment.

Its value lies in providing repeatable decision scenarios, controlled exposure to cognitive stressors, structured assessment opportunities, and measurable outcomes. It allows instructors to expose personnel to situations that would otherwise be difficult, expensive, or impractical to repeat at scale.

This does not make virtual reality a replacement for live training.

Live-fire exercises, force-on-force training, tactical medicine, and field exercises remain essential components of preparation.

When used appropriately, it becomes another component of a broader readiness architecture.

Measuring What Matters

Any Human Performance Optimization programme depends on assessment.

Measurement must extend beyond physical outputs and physiological signals. Behavioural performance remains central.

Useful indicators include decision quality, reaction latency, communication effectiveness, scenario outcomes, and physiological responses such as heart rate variability. These measures become valuable when combined with structured observation and after-action review processes.

Technology can support assessment.

It cannot replace professional evaluation.

The goal is not the collection of more data. The goal is a better understanding of operational performance.

From Training Events to Training Systems

Human Performance Optimization is often discussed as a collection of interventions.

The more useful perspective is to treat it as a system.

Physical preparation, cognitive performance, recovery, profiling, assessment, and tactical training are interconnected components of the same readiness problem.

The units that gain the greatest advantage are unlikely to be those with the most technology.

They will be the organisations that understand how these components interact and build training systems that reflect operational reality.

Readiness is not determined by how operators perform when conditions are ideal.

Readiness becomes visible when physical fatigue, cognitive load, and operational pressure begin to compete for attention, and sound decisions follow.

This article accompanies the keynote presented by Human Performance Optimization specialist Jonas Schaerk at the Tactical Performance Conference in Savannah, USA, on 16 June 2026.

Download the presentation deck here.

Decision-Making for mission success: What the evidence shows

c.haarmeijer — Thu, 16 Apr 2026 17:08:06 +0000

NATO demands higher readiness and faster force generation. Training infrastructure does not scale accordingly. Limited access, low frequency, and insufficient cognitive load exposure create a structural gap.

As complexity increases, performance is defined by decision-making under pressure and spatial understanding, not physical preparation alone. This is where immersive solutions start to move the needle.

If the physical component is easier to train, why are most training systems still built around it?

Readiness is often discussed as if it is the direct result of training volume. More range time. More exercises. More repetitions. But volume is only part of the equation. The deeper issue is structural.

Training systems that intend to prepare warfighter for operational reality are still heavily tied to infrastructure, instructor availability, scheduling, and access to facilities.

That works in times of peace as long as time, space, and logistics are stable. Under real operational pressure, those assumptions break down. Training becomes episodic instead of continuous. Units prepare in isolated blocks, operational scenarios are rare, and stress exposure or other aspects that will make operational reality complex, are ignored.

As Dr. Fabio Ibrahim, scientific research officer at Helmut Schmidt University and Captain in the German Air Force, put it: “The hardware, such as the body and also cognitive capacity is easier to train. The software, that means decision making and cognitive agility and resilience, is the hard part.”

That distinction matters. Physical performance is visible, measurable, and already deeply embedded in training culture.

Cognitive performance is less obvious, but often more decisive. Decision-making, prioritization, spatial understanding, and pattern recognition determine whether operators can act effectively under pressure. A trained brain, and shared mental models reduce cognitive load, and free capacities for dealing with operational reality.

These are not secondary skills.

They are central to mission execution in environments that are becoming increasingly complex. Immersive training and planning addresses the last, but not least, line of defense: the human warfighter and his or her cognition.

Traditional training does not always serve the cognitive demands well. Ibrahim described the problem directly: “Training facilities are scarce. Units even fight for slots on the shooting range. Repetition under relevant cognitive conditions is hard to achieve.” That is not a minor inconvenience: it’s a the bottleneck for effective force generation.

This is where RE-liON’s Operator Kit becomes relevant. Not as a substitute for live training, and not because immersion is fashionable, but because it changes access, repetition, and cognitive exposure. It allows units to train more frequently, closer to the operator, and with greater control over scenario design, time pressure, and decision demands.

The Relevance for High Stake Tasks

“In our study the decision-making score in VR was significantly higher than in the desktop condition.”, so Ibrahim.

The evidence behind that is increasingly difficult to ignore. In comparative research on decision-making, VR users outperformed desktop users with a very large effect size in overall decision-making performance (Cohen’s d = 1.54).

In operational terms, that means fewer incorrect decisions under pressure. Routes are chosen with a clearer understanding of exposure. Positions are assessed based on what is actually relevant, not what is assumed.

Decision speed also improved substantially (d = 1.09).
This is not about reacting faster for the sake of speed. It means reducing hesitation at critical moments. Faster decisions shorten exposure time, accelerate movement, and maintain initiative during dynamic situations.

The accuracy of resource allocation (d = 0.64) and the quality of prioritization (d = 0.71) also improved.
On mission level, this translates into assigning attention, time, and assets where they matter most. Less focus on low-risk elements. Fewer missed high-risk threats. Better sequencing of actions under pressure.

Spatial understanding of the operational picture showed a very strong relationship with VR conditions (r = 0.74).
That affects how operators read terrain, interiors, and movement paths. It improves orientation, reduces navigation errors, and supports coordinated movement in complex environments such as urban or multi-level structures.

Even more important, performance improved under higher perceived time pressure, without negative effects on outcomes.
This is where the difference becomes critical. Missions do not fail because conditions are calm. They fail when pressure increases and cognitive load exceeds what has been trained. Maintaining decision quality under stress directly impacts survivability and mission success.

With a 54% improvement in decision-making performance (d = 1.54), the impact is structural, not incremental.

What drives that gain is also important. It is not “immersion hype.” The improvement is not explained by presence alone, nor by subjective task load. The stronger mechanism appears to be better spatial information processing. Put simply: operators understand terrain, layout, relationships, and sequencing better, and that improves judgment.

That also aligns with one of the valuable tactical findings from CQB-related research. “Eye movement was the strongest indicator of CQB expertise.” Expertise was not only about moving faster. It was about looking at the right things in the right order.

That is a meaningful insight for both training design and measurement, when we train for high stake tasks and the outcome matters.

Operational Reality

The strategic implication is straightforward. If readiness is to be sustained, cognitive skills must be trained with greater frequency and under more relevant conditions.

If training infrastructure remains scarce, capability has to move closer to the operator. Distributed, immersive training will not replace live exercises. But it can close the gap where readiness is currently lost: between sessions, under bottlenecks, and in the cognitive domain.

RE-liON’s solution matter because operational environments are becoming more complex.

Solutions that target lethality, and dominating irregular warfare have to put cognitive performance in the focus, and serve real operational demands.

This article was reviewed by Dr Fabio Ibrahim, Scientific Research Officer of the German Navy

Full publication:

Decision-Making in virtual reality: An experimental study on virtual reality’s effect on presence, task-load and decision-making performance within operational command – ScienceDirect

Scaling force generation: RE-liON expanding in Ukraine

c.haarmeijer — Tue, 24 Mar 2026 12:42:18 +0000

Ukraine has become the reference point for effective and impactful force generation.

Throughout the last year, we deployed, tested, and refined our platform, and have experienced rapid adoption.

The collaboration and immediate feedback improves clarity, sharpens thinking, and ensures that we develop real capabilities for real threats.

Continuous Development Loop

With a legal entity on the ground, we are building a permanent presence that removes constraints, language barriers, and logistical hurdles.

Lessons learned go straight back into the platform, and every insight feeds development, making sure that our solutions continue to evolve alongside real operational needs.

There are no compromises; what works is deployed, what doesn’t is adapted or replaced, keeping readiness and capability always ahead of the threats.

Scaling Readiness

We focus on training the human system to deal with cognitive load and constant change, which is what ultimately enables operational readiness and allows units to be ready faster and better prepared for what they actually face.

Want to know more? Check in for a full briefing.

Training has to move closer to the Operator

c.haarmeijer — Thu, 05 Mar 2026 13:15:10 +0000

Why is it that we provide the world’s best athletes with every possible tool to gain a cognitive edge, yet often leave our people at the frontline stuck with training methods from the last century?

In high-performance sport, the necessity of visualization and simulation is no longer up for debate. Max Verstappen trains on the track but mostly spends countless hours a simulator. Not as a replacement for reality, but as a way to live through critical situations until his decisions become instinct.

That same shift is critical in defense. When people ask what we build at RE-liON, I don’t start with the technology. I start with questioning and tell them we build the interface between an operator’s cognitive and physical worlds, ensuring they learn faster today than they did yesterday.

What does that mean for operator readiness?

Exploiting the margins of time

What sits underneath this shift is time, or more precisely the lack of it. Operators don’t lack training methods; they lack hours. Live training is heavy by nature, requiring ranges, travel, ammunition, and complex coordination, so it happens in blocks, while operations don’t; they are continuous.

This creates a strange gap where people train episodically but have to perform continuously. If someone has ten minutes between tasks, they’re not going to drive to a range, but they can step into a scenario immediately to get a couple of reps and sets in. That’s where our system changes things; it lets training slip into the margins of time instead of waiting for designated training slots.

“If I have ten minutes and nothing scheduled, I can put on the headset and immediately be inside a scenario.” — BNR Podcast

Mastery through repetition

Many high-stakes tasks simply cannot be repeated often in the physical world. Drone threats are a perfect example; weather, airspace restrictions, and safety requirements limit live practice. In a digital environment, an operator can run the same “corner” until the response is automatic.

Also, our system provides a level of visibility that live drills lack. We can measure exactly how people moved, where they looked, and how they reacted. That data allows for targeted cognitive training, ensuring every minute spent in the headset translates to mission success.

Lessons from the frontline

Our philosophy was shaped by elite sport, where you prepare for a peak moment. In defense, however, performance must be sustained under extreme fatigue and uncertainty. Working directly with Ukrainian units has made it clear that doctrine is no longer static. Development cannot sit on theoretical requirement sheets; it must move at the speed of the people doing the work.

We focus on sensory familiarity—ensuring operators recognize the sights and sounds of threats like drones before they encounter them for real. Exposure settles the perception faster, allowing decisions to follow sooner.

Decentralizing readiness

The mantra is simple: distance kills frequency. Every kilometer to a training center and every minute of setup time quietly reduces how often an operator trains.

Therefore, training must move closer to the operator. By creating solutions that are smaller and simpler, we ensure they are usable wherever the unit actually is. When these tools stay with the unit, they transcend “training” and begin supporting real-world rehearsal and preparation.

Ultimately, it isn’t about the VR; it’s about human readiness.

Want to hear it back?

“In het defensief” on BNR Radio (Dutch)

Beyond Weaponry: the Warfighter is Key to Deterrence and Winning

c.haarmeijer — Wed, 26 Feb 2025 06:49:29 +0000

In modern military strategy, deterrence is key, relying heavily on the readiness and presence of highly skilled warfighters. Only when deterrence fails does the objective shift to war fighting. Thus, warfighters, supported by weapon systems and other assets, are central to operations.

Why Maintaining a Ready Warfighter Force is Hard

Maintaining a robust warfighter force is demanding, requiring ongoing training and significant investment as they’re a scarce asset. This challenge is worsened by declining Western populations and the complexities of tech-driven warfare, which demand advanced training and greater readiness. The professional warfighter’s vulnerability is a major concern, especially as they often suffer heavy casualties in major conflicts. For example, the conflict in Ukraine demonstrated the challenges of replacing skilled warfighters with less experienced civilians, a process that requires a significant increase in numbers and capability.

Warfighters are vital, underscoring the need to prioritize their education, training and professional development. While traditional defense strategies often focus on enhancing weapon systems, the world needs more organisations innovating to amplify warfighters’ lethality through cognition and operational reach.

“The most important 6 inches on the battlefield, is between your ears”

— General Jim Mattis, US Marine Corps

Historical Context: Scaling Military Forces

World War II saw the U.S. military’s personnel swell from 175.000 to 8 million due to the 1940 Selective Training and Service Act, mirroring Ukraine’s current rapid military expansion. This massive scale put immense pressure on resources, a situation now that can be alleviated by off-the-shelf, dual-use solutions allowing decentralized, on-demand use in both training and operations.

How to Amplify Warfighter Lethality

By integrating continuous sensing and data, these solutions actively oversee warfighter performance. It also utilizes immersive technology to present spatial and tactical problems in ways that are intuitive and easy to understand, drastically improving readiness. Future developments will allow small teams to effectively plan missions and control whole arrays of unmanned systems, thereby expanding warfighter reach without causing cognitive overload. These solutions, similar to RE-liON’s, are poised to become as integral to warfighters as personal communication devices and weapons systems are today. They do more than just prepare warfighters for combat; it revolutionizes how they engage, plan, and in the future: execute missions.

Sources

Picture, https://www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/training-american-gi
Decline in military personnel, https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/military-personnel?time=1938..latest

The need for speed is a quality on it’s own

c.haarmeijer — Tue, 27 Aug 2024 14:31:52 +0000

Great read: the need for speed is a quality on it’s own.

With a spot on quote from Palantir’s Shyam Sankar “Today the bureaucracy tries to minimize risk to programs, but paradoxically maximizes risk to mission. We sacrifice speed on the altar of control”.

Super-cognition for CBRN operations on-track in EDF’s MoSaiC

c.haarmeijer — Tue, 18 Jun 2024 14:41:30 +0000

In MOSAIC, RE-liON is advancing an existing C2 system with immersive technology to enhance rapid understanding and on-the-loop warfighter-machine teaming using an intuitive user-interface.

The project, backed by the European Defense Fund (EDF) and the 5 member states Italy, Denmark, Austria, Estonia and The Netherlands, aims to streamline decision-making for CBRN operations in hostile and friendly environments, perfectly aligning with RE-liON’s mission to boost warfighter super-cognition.

Having just passed its midpoint, which was marked by a conference led by Fondazione SAFE and hosted by CAFA Tech in Tallinn, the project focuses on developing cost-effective technologies for the detection, identification, and real-time monitoring of chemical and biological threats.

Background information can be found on the Mosaic website.

Key partners include the AIT Austrian Institute of Technology, ENEA, CAFA Tech, Consorzio C.R.E.O. and Bruhn NewTech.