Introduced in the early 1980's, the Hoffman tank gunfire simulator is a pyrotechnic device manufactured by Diehl Defence, used in military training alongside non-gunfire training systems such as MILES. It consists of an array of tubes (usually nine, [1] though the variant for the Leopard 2 has seventeen [2] ) resembling a multiple grenade launcher into which explosive cartridges are inserted: these generate a flash, sound and smoke plume designed to imitate the firing of a tank gun.
The Hoffman simulator mounts to a bracket which is mounted somewhere near the front of a tank's turret. On the M1 Abrams it is clamped to the bore evacuator,[ citation needed ] while on recent variants of the Leopard 2 it is mounted on the frontal turret armor.[ citation needed ] The system is manually loaded and fired electrically, with firing linked to the trigger of the tank's main gun.
The system is referred to as the "Simulator Tank Gunfire: Main Weapons Effect Signature" in US service, with the cartridges referred to as Simulator, Flash, Artillery M21. [3]
Over the course of 20 years of service with the US Army, the Hoffman Device acquired a reputation for being prone to accidental discharges: while it is only supposed to fire when triggered electrically, there were numerous cases where static electricity or other local electrical fields resulted in uncommanded firing. A series of internal documents obtained by CBS News in 2003 included statements that "the ammunition is always unsafe" and that many of the devices were "an accident waiting to happen." [4]
In early 2004, modifications were made to Hoffman simulators to prevent uncommanded firing, and a notification was circulated stating that any unmodified devices found in stock should be destroyed. [5]
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