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SIMNET
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<p>SIMNET was a <a href="/facts/Wide_area_network/mAkW4gr3">wide area network</a> with vehicle simulators and displays for real-time distributed combat simulation: tanks, helicopters and airplanes in a virtual battlefield. SIMNET was developed for and used by the <a href="/facts/United_States_military/NHVsU9Id">United States military</a>. SIMNET development began in the mid-1980s, was fielded starting in 1987, and was used for training until successor programs came online well into the 1990s. </p><p>SIMNET was perhaps the world's first fully operational virtual reality system and was the first real time, networked simulator. It was not unlike our massive multiplayer games today. It supported a variety of air and ground vehicles, some human-directed and others autonomous. </p>