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weapon and a microwave. In February this year,
the service announced that it had deployed the
company’s High-Energy Laser Weapon System
2 (HELWS), a system designed to counter drone
threats, to an unidentified combatant command
base abroad for operator training and an initial [ TECHNOLOGY ]
performance evaluation. The service is also
evaluating Raytheon’s PHASER High Power
Microwave System (PHASER), and the Air
Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Tactical
High-Power Operational Responder (THOR)
drone killer.

fully tested five directed energy prototype systems, including four Buzzing with Activity
high-energy lasers and one high-power microwave, as counter-un- A number of countries in the Asia-Pacific
manned aerial vehicle (UAV) weapons. “Directed energy weapons region, including China, India, Japan, Australia
are emerging in the battlespace for all three services,” says Kelly and Pakistan are vying for supremacy in the
Hammett, who runs the Directed Energy Directorate at the U.S. hypersonic and directed-energy weapons race.
Air Force Research Laboratory. “You’re going to see them in your China, the global leader in hypersonic weapons,
battlespace, whether you like it or not. They may be aimed at you.” is also developing directed-energy weapons.
India, which is developing the hypersonic
Lasers in the Spotlight BrahMos II missile, carried out a successful
China, which has expanded its military might in the last two decades flight test of a hypersonic technology demon-
at a speed unmatched by any other country, used a ground-based strator vehicle (HSTDV) in September last
laser to "dazzle" an orbiting U.S. satellite in 2006. The country is year. The defence department is also eyeing
also investing in other directed energy arms, including high-powered a Tactical High Energy Laser System for the
microwave, radio frequency, railgun, and particle beam weapons. Army and Air Force. The Defence Research
In 2020, the country’s military sought suppliers for a new airborne and Development Organisation (DRDO) has
laser weapon that could be used to defend a friendly aircraft from also developed an anti-drone system that is
incoming missile threats or destroy enemy aircraft and ground capable of defeating micro drones through
targets. The airborne laser pods are to be mounted to warplanes either jamming of command-and-control links
such as the Shenyang J-15 “Flying Shark” carrier-based fighter, or by damaging the drones through laser-based
J-20 “Mighty Dragon” heavy fighter, and support aircraft such as DEW. The DRDO is also working on DURGA
the Xi’an Y-20. II (Directionally Unrestricted Ray-Gun Array),
Russia, which unveiled the Peresvet high-energy laser weapon 100-kilowatt, lightweight directed-energy
in December 2018, is currently said to be working on new laser system for the Indian Army.
systems. In January this year, Germany awarded a consortium
comprising MBDA Deutschland and Rheinmetall a contract to India Bets on Local
build and test a prototype laser demonstrator for the German India’s first anti-radiation missile, Rudram, is
Navy’s K130 corvette. Israel’s Directorate of Defense Research and expected to be ready for induction into service
Development is developing laser-based systems that can down by 2023 and will boost the Indian Air Force’s
rockets, mortars, drones, and anti-tank missiles. Rafael Advanced capabilities to defeat enemy radars and surveil-
Defense Systems, Rafael’s new Drone Dome C-UAS system uses lance systems. The defence department has
a high-powered laser beam to detect, identify and intercept moving also invested in the smart anti-airfield weapon
targets, thus providing a solution for securing air space from hostile (SAAW), a precision strike weapon that can
drones. In June this year, Israel’s Defence Ministry announced that be used to target enemy airfield assets such
Elbit Systems and the Israeli Air Force had successfully shot down as radars, bunkers, taxi tracks and runways.
drones with a high-powered airborne laser system installed on a SAAW, developed by the DRDO’s research
civilian light aircraft. The laser, fired from a civilian Cessna plane, centre Imarat, has a range of 100km and is
destroyed the unmanned targets at differing ranges and altitudes, expected to enter service in two years. The
the ministry said. country has also started work on Astra’ Mk2,
In November 2019, the US Air Force successfully tested an indigenous beyond-visual-range (BVR) air-
Lockheed Martin’s Advanced Test High Energy Asset (ATHENA) to-air missile that will be able to strike enemy
laser weapon system, shooting down a number of fixed-wing and targets 160 km away without getting out of
rotary drones. ATHENA is designed to defeat close-in, low-value its own airspace. The Astra Mk 1 110 km ver-
threats such as improvised rockets, unmanned aerial systems, sion, which has been integrated with the IAF’s
vehicles, and small boats. Raytheon, which has already delivered Su-30 MKI fighters, will be used on the service’s
the first high-energy counter-drone laser weapon system to the MiG-29 and Light Combat Aircraft ‘Tejas’ Mk 1,
U.S. Air Force, is contracted to provide the service another laser and the Indian Navy’s MiG-29K aircraft.

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