- This feels like an obvious thing to say, but:
tanks are expensive,
both to buy and to fuel.
If you want to train someone to drive one,
it'd be great if they could learn the basics
on a simulator first.
So in the 1970s, the Swiss Army had the idea
to design and build tank simulators.
But this was well before computer-generated images.
They couldn't create a virtual world. So instead...
...they built a wonderful example of 70s analog technology.
The viewscreen in that box is connected to a real camera
and a real miniature landscape through there.
In the past, thousands and thousands of tank drivers
trained on machines like that.
There's now only one simulator left in the world
and it's in the Swiss Military Museum, about an hour north of Zurich.
And tourists can try it.
- There existed in the past,
12 simulators for different types of tanks.
It's very accurate for teaching the basics,
and teaching where to go with the hand and with the feet.
- Put that over your head.
And then because in a normal tank it's too loud with the motor noises,
you have a special microphone that goes around,
- Throat mic! - It's a throat mic.
- So this goes on like...
- This. - Oh, that is...
Okay, that's interesting.
Yep. Okay.
- Headset.
- Okay.
- Looks good.
- Let's drive a tank.
- Yeah, I wish you a good drive.
- Thank you!
Wow. Okay.
All right, so.
- So, I'm going to start the hydraulics.
- Yep.
Oh boy! Okay. [laughs]
- Sounds good.
Now, you can start the main motor.
[motor revving]
- Very well. Sounds good.
- You can drive in the middle.
- It's a tank.
- Yeah, sure.
You can go in the fourth gear.
- Yeah.
- That's the only one of the Type 68 tank that's remaining
and we managed to get it running here.
It took roughly about one and a half, two years.
We had to really go into it from ground-up.
It was very difficult. Not for everything,
but mostly for the electrical and electronic parts
because it's old tech.
It's not like you can go to any supermarket and buy it.
- Fifth gear.
- There is a memory function on the computer module
which is based off this x and y axis, says you're here, you're on gravel,
you're on snow, you're on normal earth, you're on road, and something like that.
If you drive into a tree, the feet where the camera sits on
just moves up and it's like you're having a panoramic ride
above our model with a helicopter!
- Okay, we can go...
- Fifth gear, fifth gear.
- The foot where you're driving on, it's kind of a metal slide.
If that moves a tiny bit.
Or for instance, if there's some contact with it
and it moves, for instance,
it needs to go up to go over that,
it will notice that and signalize the cabin
that you're moving over something.
- The camera's original. The foot is original.
The whole model is original.
Everything except for the computer part is original,
but it was too old and you don't find parts easily for that.
So we had to rebuild it on a Raspberry Pi.
- You can go into fourth gear again if you're comfortable.
- It is really dangerous what you do.
Here, it's a game. It's like a game.
This job is not a game.
- Thank you very much.
- You're welcome.
- [laughing] How do I get out of here?