Last week, the British Army successfully tested a new directed energy laser at Radnor Range, a test site located in Wales. According to a Government press release on 11 December, British Army troops fired a 15-kilowatt laser directed energy weapon (LDEW), which was mounted on a Wolfhound armoured vehicle – a protected troop-carrying vehicle – as part of the UK Ministry of Defence’s Land Demonstrator programme. This enabled soldiers from 16th Regiment Royal Artillery to successfully track and neutralise BQ400 Raider Uncrewed Aerial Targets, provided by Boresight.
BQ400 Raider Uncrewed Aerial Target melted by DELW. (Image Credit: DE&S)
The LDEW system, known as Project Swinton, works by emitting a focused beam of infrared light in the form of energy toward its target, utilising advanced sensors and tracking systems to maintain real-time lock-on and precision. Unlike traditional munitions, laser weapons offer virtually unlimited ammunition, making them a potentially cost-effective alternative to certain existing weapons in service, which underscores the potential of lasers as a viable counter-UAS solution.
Maria Eagle MP, Minister for Defence Procurement and Industry, stated that “this ground-breaking technology demonstrates Britain’s commitment to staying at the forefront of military innovation”. She continued, “the successful testing of this laser weapon system represents a significant step forward in our development of possible future defence capabilities and showcases British engineering excellence.”
The laser was developed by Team Hersa, a collaboration between the Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S), Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and a consortium led by Raytheon UK, with the intention of delivering the Government’s plan to further enhance national security through the rapid advancement of innovative technologies.
Although this is the first time soldiers have used the laser against a dozen of flying drones, the demonstrator had already been successfully deployed earlier in July, at Porton Down, by a team of technical specialists within the UK Ministry of Defence. In this initial test, the laser weapon successfully neutralised targets, including enemy drones, at distances greater than 1 km. These two experiments are expected to provide valuable knowledge, insights, and experience to inform future requirements decisions, enabling the UK to stay at the forefront of this new and disruptive technology.
According to Stephen Waller, Directed Energy Weapons Team Leader for DE&S, “this is still an emerging technology, but the world has changed and we are seeing more use of drones in the battlespace. This requires a more cost-effective solution to protect our troops (…) Having the capability to track and eliminate moving drones will give UK troops a better operational advantage and these successful trials have demonstrated that we are well on our way to achieving this.”
Matt Cork, Head of Team Hersa at Dstl, also commented, “the successful testing of the Laser Directed Energy Weapon demonstrator is an important step towards a future capability. This technology has the potential to offer a credible and cost-effective means to defeat a range of current and future threats, which would improve the effectiveness of our armed forces”
In addition to Raytheon UK, Fraser Nash, NP Aerospace, LumOptica, Blighter Surveillance Systems and Cambridge Pixel have also been involved in developing the weapon under a £16.8 million contract awarded by Team Hersa. The next steps in the project will use lessons learned throughout the whole project to inform future Laser DEW requirements for the British Army.
Post Image Credit: UK Ministry of Defence
