The U.S. Army Program Executive Office of Simulation, Training and Instrumentation (PEO STRI) has awarded Lockheed Martin [NYSE: LMT] a $28.6 million contract to upgrade more than 60 Advanced Gunnery Training Systems (AGTS) for M1A1 and M1A2 main battle tanks.

The company will also provide 11 new M1A2 training systems as a part of the two-year effort.

The AGTS is a simulator designed to train individuals, crews, platoons and companies in precision gunnery skills, enabling trainees to transition quickly to live fire or combat gunnery.

As part of the upgrade effort, Lockheed Martin will integrate the newest version of its Scalable Advanced Graphics Engine (SAGE) image generation technology, which draws from extensive visual databases to help warfighters experience a more detailed environment and encounter more realistic targets.

"These upgrades will help keep warfighters prepared for a dynamic operational environment," said Jim Craig, vice president of training systems in Lockheed Martin's Global Training and Logistics business.

"Through the AGTS and our SAGE image generation software, they get a training experience that is unmatched - except in real life."

Additional upgrades include new graphic user interfaces, such as more pull-down menus for the instructor screens, making it even easier for instructors to monitor and control the training scenarios.

Since Lockheed Martin developed the original AGTS architecture more than 15 years ago, the company has delivered over 200 AGTS systems and upgrades to U.S. Department of Defense customers with an additional 180 to foreign partner nations.