A gated viewing laser radar has an excellent performance in underwater low light level imaging, and it also provides a viable solution to inhibit backscattering. In this paper, a gated viewing imaging system according to the demand for real-time imaging is presented, and then the simulation is used to analyze the performance of the real-time gated viewing system. The range accuracy performance is limited by the slice number, the width of gate, the delay time step, the initial delay time, as well as the system noise and atmospheric turbulence. The simulation results indicate that the highest range accuracy can be achieved when the system works with the optimal parameters. Finally, how to choose the optimal parameters has been researched. A gated viewing laser radar has an excellent performance in underwater low light level imaging, and it also provides a viable solution to inhibit backscattering. In this paper, a gated viewing imaging system according to the demand for real-time imaging is presented, and then the accuracy is used to analyze the performance of the real-time gated viewing system. The range accuracy performance is limited by the slice number, the width of the gate, the delay time step, the initial delay time, as well as the system noise and atmospheric turbulence. The simulation results indicate that the highest range accuracy can be achieved when the system works with the optimal parameters. Finally, how to choose the optimal parameters has been researched.