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OTTAWA — The Canadian military spent $209 million on a high-tech weapons simulator but five years passed before the system was used for the role it originally had been purchased for, and even then troops did not take part in all of the training the government paid for.

Despite that, the army is looking to spend up to $249 million on a new, similar system.

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In 2003, the army convinced the Liberal government it needed the Weapons Effects Simulation (WES) system to properly train its troops against similarly equipped armies fielding infantry units, tanks and armoured vehicles.

The $137-million contract went to the U.S. firm Cubic Defence, which was supported by SNC Lavalin of Montreal.

The WES system is comparable to a more sophisticated version of laser tag: lasers and radios simulate weapons fire, with hits being recorded by computerized sensors attached to soldiers, tanks or other vehicles, the military explained.