On 13 November 1973, an MQM-33B aerial target drone 3.6 m long was shot down by a 100 kW class Carbon dioxide laser over Kirtland Air Force Base, New Mexico. A half century later, laser weapons finally had their combat debut.
In late May 2025, reports surfaced on pro-Russian Telegram channels stating that the Russian military was deploying a Chinese-built laser weapon against Ukrainian drones. To date, these claims have not been confirmed by either Moscow or Beijing. In contrast, there is more certainty regarding the 28 May 2025 Israeli government announcement that laser weapon systems developed by Rafael Advanced Defence Systems successfully downed “dozens” of aerial drones launched by Hezbollah from Lebanese territory at the beginning of October 2024. Rafael’s chairman, Yuval Steinitz, stated that Israel had become the “first country in the world to transform high-power laser technology into a fully operational system and to execute actual combat interceptions”.
This begs the question: why did 51 years pass between the 1973 Kirtland AFB demonstration and the first operational deployment of an offensive or interceptor laser? The short answer is that the technology of the 1970s – and 1980s and 1990s – was insufficient to realise the ambitions of either the United States or any other military. It was not until the early 2000s that the Zeus-HLONS (Zeus-HMMWV, Laser Ordnance Neutralization System) was deployed to Afghanistan and Iraq. Despite still being developmental, and having no more than 2 kW output, the vehicle-mounted system succeeded in destroying hundreds of mines and roadside bombs. However, the static targets provided comparatively little challenge. Fielding directed energy weapons (DEWs) which were both battlefield practical and possessed sufficient precision and power to engage and neutralise moving targets would take another two decades.
DEWs: Major challenges
While various different technologies fall under the category of DEW, the two types of weapons currently being pursued are
- high-energy laser (HEL) and
- high-power microwave (HPM) weapons.
Near-term ambitions centre around counter-unmanned aerial vehicles (C-UAV), as well as counter rocket, artillery and mortar (C-RAM) applications. With further development, armed forces hope to eventually expand DEW capabilities to include downing cruise missiles, ballistic missiles and manned aircraft. While research and development is ongoing for ground-based, ship-based, and even airborne DEW systems, this article will focus on fixed and mobile ground-based technology.
Fielding effective directed energy weapons faces several challenges. HELs in particular rely on generating and maintaining a sufficiently powerful and coherent beam, and keeping that beam on a moving target for sufficient time to either disable sensors (if pursuing the less-lethal option), or burn through the target’s skin to destroy vital components. Improvements in optics, computing power and artificial intelligence are making significant progress with regard to beam coherence and targeting capabilities.
However, power and cooling demands remain significant challenges for both HELs and HPMs, especially for mobile weapon systems. While industry and the military frequently cite DEWs as possessing ‘infinite magazine depth’ as a major advantage over conventional projectile weapons, in practice tactical DEWs still have a limited combat endurance. Most vehicle engines and diesel-powered field generators do not produce sufficient continuous power to directly feed energy weapons (especially at higher power levels). More commonly, they charge batteries which in turn power the weapons, either directly or via Supercapacitors. When the batteries are drained, they must be recharged before the weapons can resume firing. DEWs deployed to protect fixed or relocatable sites can alternately be powered directly from the electric grid, promising greater endurance.
Independent of energy supply, DEWs’ operational endurance is limited by their thermal management capacity. Both HELs and HPMs both quickly generate massive amounts of heat which, if not managed correctly, degrades performance and can damage vital working components. Both weapon types typically require substantial cooling-off intervals after relatively brief (compared to projectile weapons) sustained firing. Here again, DEWs operating from fixed locations (and indeed on naval vessels) can be provided with larger and more powerful cooling systems than those operating from tactical vehicles. Indeed; for land vehicles, these cooling systems will represent a further burden on available power, as well as available volume and weight.
Further complicating matters is the issue of increasing effective range – simply put, to make HELs and HPMs able to engage targets beyond very short ranges, significantly more power is needed. This in turn makes it more of a challenge to meet system power supply and cooling requirements, and so requires more onboard volume and weight dedicated to the DEW. Additionally, in the case of HPMs, the powerful signals they emit make them highly vulnerable to discovery by hostile electronic intelligence (ELINT) systems.
The challenges have not deterred the armed forces of many nations from systematically pursuing the technology. This persistence is beginning to pay off, with development projects in the United States, Europe and Israel showing significant progress recently.
United States
The United States Army and US Air Force (USAF) are pursuing multiple DEW programmes, several of which are considered high priority. These include:
DE-M-SHORAD
The Stryker-mounted Directed Energy Maneuver Short-Range Air Defense (DE-M-SHORAD) system is intended to augment the in-service gun- and missile-armed Sgt Stout M-SHORAD vehicles escorting manoeuvre forces.
The Army intends to deploy DE-M-SHORAD against Group 1-3 UAVs and in the C-RAM role; Department of Defense (DoD) documents also mention a potential capability to combat helicopters and low-flying fixed-wing aircraft, although this would be considerably more challenging given the typically greater ranges which would be required for engaging these latter target types.
In 2023, four prototypes (developed by Kord Industries as lead integrator) were assigned to an Army Air Defence Artillery platoon for evaluation. The prototypes’ primary weapon is a scalable RTX-designed 50 kW class laser powered by Lithium-Nickel-Cobalt-Aluminium oxide (Li-NCA) batteries charged by diesel generators aboard the vehicle. The platoon deployed to Iraq in 2024 for operational evaluation, but the results were below expectations. The Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office (RCCTO) postponed DE-M-SHORAD’s transition to a programme of record, and issued new prototype contracts.
In June 2025, the Army conducted an exercise at Fort Sill, pitting prototype DE weapons, including a DE M-SHORAD system, against a swarm of Group 1-3 UAS. The Army’s 27 June 2025 press release stated that data from these tests will shape future HEL development and procurement. The statement also stressed that short-range directed energy systems are intended to augment, not replace, kinetic weapon systems.
IFPC-HEL/IFPC-HPM
The indirect fire protection capability (IFPC) is a vehicle-mounted system designed to protect high-value fixed and relocatable sites against UAVs, RAM threats and cruise missiles. In addition to kinetic weapon systems, an IFPC-HEL variant and an IFPC-HPM variant were planned. In 2023, the RCCTO awarded Lockheed Martin a contract to deliver vehicle-mounted 300 kW class laser weapon systems prototypes by October 2025. However, the Congressional Research Service notes that future funding for IFPC-HEL is eliminated from the Army’s budget plans starting in FY2026, effectively freezing the programme; the impact of this on the IFPC-HPM remains to be seen, as the two types were to be used in tandem.
Meanwhile, Epirus provided the RCCTO with four transportable IFPC-HPM prototypes in FY 2024. According to Epirus, New Equipment Training (NET) and Engineering Developmental Testing (EDT) by the Army validated the HPM system’s effectiveness against drones and drone swarms in a series of increasingly complex flight patterns. Epirus has stated that their HPM system functions differently to many others, using long pulses (circa 1 ms) to cause more sustained interference within circuitry, as opposed to the more typical approach employing very short pulses (circa 10 ns) at very high peak power.
Furthermore, on 17 July 2025, the RCCTO placed an order worth USD 43.5 million for two Integrated Fires Protection Capability High-Power Microwave (IFPC-HPM) Generation II (GEN II) systems. According to Epirus, these models are more capable than the GEN I models initially procured; in a press release the company stated: “The IFPC-HPM GEN II systems are expected to more than double the maximum effective range of GEN I systems, increase power by a projected 30 percent and feature the inclusion of high-density batteries for prolonged operating times and decreased external power requirements, extra-long pulse widths for maximizing energy output for target defeat, high-duty burst mode for faster multitarget engagement, advanced waveform and polarization techniques for increased lethality against a broader set of targets of interest and Soldier usability enhancements.”
Open architecture HEL
The IFPC-HEL funding change notwithstanding, the Army underscores its enduring commitment to fielding HELs. In March 2025, Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII) announced an RCCTO award to develop and test an open architecture HEL weapon system prototype to acquire, track and destroy Group 1-3 UAVs. It will be suitable for both fixed-site defence and integration onto vehicles. The open architecture will permit exchange of subsystems and software as the weapon evolves. According to HII, the RCCTO award is expected to ultimately culminate in a transition to the US Army’s Program Executive Office for Missiles and Space. “As part of this process, HII’s prototype HEL will undergo field testing to evaluate its safety and operational suitability. Upon successful demonstration, the system is expected to transition into low-rate initial production,” according to the company’s press release.
High-power microwave weapons
The USAF is focusing more closely on developing HPMs suitable for defence of fixed or semi-fixed installations such as air bases. In December 2022, the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) opened the 1,100 m2 High-Power Electromagnetic Effects and Modeling Facility at Kirtland AFB. According to the AFRL press release, the facility will be used for planning, developing, prototyping, testing and deploying high-powered radio/microwave frequency weapons systems.
THOR/Mjölnir
Even prior to opening the centralised lab, the USAF has experimented with several HPM designs and prototypes. These include the Tactical High-Power Operational Responder (THOR) technology demonstrator developed by the AFRL in conjunction with Leidos and BAE Systems. The entire weapon system fits inside a 6-m ISO container, topped by the emitter antenna mounted on a fast-moving gimbal. THOR is powered directly from the electric grid, operating (as expressed by the AFRL) “from a wall plug. (…) A target is identified, the silent weapon discharges in a nanosecond and the impact is instantaneous.” Evaluation began in 2018, and following a successful 12-month overseas field operation assessment, testing culminated in April 2023 with the defeat of a mock swarm attack at Kirtland AFB.
A follow-up system designated Mjölnir (named for the mythological Thor’s hammer) is being developed by Leidos under a 2022 contract. Building on THOR’s capabilities, the new prototype is expected to achieve greater capability, reliability, and manufacturing readiness. “Mjölnir will focus on creating a detailed blueprint for all future (C-UAV) HPM systems with enhanced range and technology for detecting and tracking UAVs,” said Adrian Lucero, THOR programme manager at AFRL’s Directed Energy Directorate, in February 2022. Like THOR, it is conceived for comparatively close-range defence against Class 1 and 2 UAVs.
CHIMERA
In contrast, the Counter-Electronic High-Power Microwave Extended-Range Air Base Defense (CHIMERA) is designed to engage medium- to long-range targets.
AFRL awarded the development contract to Raytheon Missiles and Defense in October 2020. In January 2024, a successful three-week field test was conducted during which CHIMERA applied directed energy to multiple static target variations, and acquired and tracked aerial targets through their entire flight path. According to Raytheon, the system wields more power than other HPMs designed to defeat airborne threats (as indeed it would need to, in order to engage such targets at longer ranges). Unclassified public information regarding CHIMERA remains limited.
Europe
Numerous multinational (European Union) and national-level DEW research, development and testing programmes are underway in Europe.
TALOS-TVVO
The Tactical Advanced Laser Optical Systems: Technologies for High Power Laser, Vulnerability study, Vignette development and Operational Study (TALOS-TVVO) is funded by the European Defence Fund. Launched in December 2024 and running for 36 months, some 21 firms and institutes from eight EU nations are involved, including CILAS (as project coordinator), Leonardo and Rheinmetall. The goal is to enable development of fully European and sovereign 100 kW class laser weapons by 2030. To this end, the project will work to mature critical technologies and subsystems, ensure an adequate European industrial base and supply chain for HEL production, and build demonstrators. The programme intends to coordinate with national MoDs to permit TALOS-TVVO technologies to flow into national HEL programmes; technologies are to be flexible enough to satisfy different end-user requirements.
PESCO DES
The EU’s Directed Energy Systems (DES) project was officially approved on 27 May 2025 under the EU’s Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) initiative framework and is set to run from 2025 to 2029. The project aims to develop modular and scalable DEWs that can be mounted on any mobile platform. The primary focus is on Short- and Very-Short-Range Air Defense (SHORAD/VSHORAD) capabilities for the CUAV and CRAM mission as well as defence against loitering munitions and cruise missiles. The DES initiative will integrate scalable high-energy laser technology (10–100 kW power) into military vehicles and will feature an advanced command and control (C2) system, incorporating threat evaluation, sensing, and weapon assignment tools. Precision, engagement speed, adequate ‘magazine depth’ and low-collateral potential are key requirements. The project is led by Italy, with Spain as a key partner; major industry partners include Leonardo and MBDA.
DragonFire
At the national level, Britain has been making notable advances toward fielding a HEL weapon. Overall the MoD plans to invest GBP 1 billion for DEW programmes over the next five years as part of a spending package announced in June 2025, building on years of previous research and development.
The MoD’s Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) awarded the DragonFire HEL technology demonstrator contract in 2017. The system was designed by MBDA as lead contractor, with Leonardo providing the beam director and QinetiQ the laser source. A series of incremental tests led to the UK’s first high-powered long range laser trial in 2022, during which DragonFire was successfully tested against static targets (including mortar bombs) at up to 3.4 km range. In late 2023, the HEL defeated the first aerial targets. According to a June 2025 statement by Dstl, recent successful testing includes over 300 firings of the DragonFire demonstrator and 30 drone defeats. Precise performance parameters remain classified, but the MoD states that DragonFire can engage with any visible target with “pinpoint accuracy, (…) leading to structural failure or more impactful results if the warhead is targeted”. On 2 June 2025 the MoD announced plans to arm the Royal Navy’s Type 45 destroyer with DragonFire. By contrast, the current Army-tested demonstrators will not enter service, but provide crucial insights for future DEW development.
Land LDEW Demonstrator
Another ongoing UK MoD programme is the ‘Land LDEW’ (Laser Directed Energy Weapon) Demonstrator programme, an advanced capability demonstrator initiative designed to explore and accelerate the integration of DEWs onto land platforms.
During this programme, British Army air defence personnel evaluated the Raytheon High-Energy Laser Weapon System, mounting it on a Wolfhound armoured vehicle. In early November 2024, the system engaged and destroyed multiple UAVs in midair at varying altitudes, distances and speeds. This constituted the first such test of a HEL from a British armoured vehicle (the DragonFire tests were conducted from fixed test platforms). As noted by the MoD, “putting the demonstrator in the hands of the Army early will help inform future requirements and reduces the risks associated with future DEW acquisition. The intent is not to simply introduce these systems into service, but to use the demonstrators as building blocks for laser weapon capability in the UK.”
On 13 June 2025, the UK MoD put out a preliminary market engagement notice soliciting industry proposals for a HEL system capable of destroying small UAVs at ranges of over 1 km, with a declared budget of GBP 20 million for purchasing “multiple systems”, and with envisioned contract period of 1 August 2025 to 31 March 2026.
RapidDestroyer
The UK’s Dstl is also testing an HPM for the C-UAV mission. The system has previously been referred to as ‘RFDEW’ (Radio Frequency Directed Energy Weapon) under Dstl’s Project Ealing, but has since been designated ‘RapidDestroyer’ by Thales UK, the lead developer under Team Hersa (which also includes QinetiQ, Teledyne e2v and Horiba Mirais).
Like other HPM weapons, RapidDestroyer promises to be especially valuable against drone swarms by virtue of being able to generate a wide beam to engage multiple targets simultaneously, though it can also generate a narrow beam to engage individual targets. Both the UK MoD and Thales announced on 17 April 2025 that the system had successfully concluded the largest counter-drone swarm exercise the British Army had conducted to date. During the experiment, the Army brought down two swarms of drones in a single engagement; across the complete testing cycle more than 100 drones were tracked, engaged and defeated by RapidDestroyer. “With improvements on range and power, which could come with further development, this would be a great asset to Layered Air Defence,” said Royal Artillery Sgt Mayers after participating in the experiment.
The electromagnetic pulses emitted by RapidDestroyer disrupt or damage critical electronic components inside drones, causing them to crash or malfunction. According to the UK MoD, the system currently has a range of up to 1 km against small UAV-type targets.
Israel
According to the Israeli MoD, the laser DEW systems deployed at the country’s northern border in 2024 were related, but not identical to, the Magen Or (‘Shield of Light’; better known internationally as ‘Iron Beam’) system, which the Israel Defense Forces plan to introduce operationally by the end of 2025. The 100 kW class Iron Beam system is designed to intercept UAVs, RAM threats, and cruise missiles at ranges of up to 10 km (roughly the same as early versions of Iron Dome). The semi-mobile containerised weapon system can be deployed to defend military installations, high-value infrastructure or civilian population centres. The system operator controls the weapon remotely via datalink. As described by Rafael, high-performance beam directors and adaptive optics permit persistent focus of the beam on one coin-sized spot on the target, resulting in target neutralisation within seconds. Rapid retargeting capability neutralises swarm attacks.
Rafael is also developing a mobile variant ‘Iron Beam-M’, a truck or armoured-vehicle mounted system utilising a 50 kW laser, with a range of “several kilometres”. Suitable as a stand-alone weapon or integration into a layered air defence network, the Iron Beam-M can accompany manoeuvre forces or be deployed to protect fixed sites against UAVs and loitering munitions. Power for beam generation and for cooling is provided by a battery storage bank that is charged periodically by an onboard generator.
Rounding out the Rafael L-DEW family is the Lite-Beam, a 10 kW class system which can engage low-flying aerial targets as well as ground targets. It is designed to neutralise swarms of up to ten targets at ranges up to 3 km. The lightweight weapon can be integrated aboard a wide range of tactical vehicles including 4×4, 6×6, 8×8 and tracked armoured fighting vehicles. This versatility makes it highly suitable for rapid relocation as needed.
Finding their niche
While not a panacea, DEWs – whether HELs or HPMs – have great promise as one component of layered air and missile defence networks defending both fixed installations and manoeuvre forces. The growing diversity of aerial threats requires an equally diverse set of scalable countermeasures. Both lasers and microwaves travel at the speed of light, hypothetically making them more responsive than kinetic munitions (depending on the ‘dwell time’ on target). DEWs are particularly suited to defeating small to medium UAVs and swarm attacks which could either overwhelm, or would be uneconomical to engage with traditional cannon-or missile-based air-defence systems. Engineers and military planners presume that upscaled DEWs, such as lasers in the 500 kW to MW range, could defeat cruise or even ballistic missiles. Integration into air defence command and control systems, refining targeting systems, and overcoming thermal management and power supply challenges will determine if and when DEWs can unleash their full potential on the future battlefield.
Sidney E. Dean
