DragonFire | Next Generation Laser | Dstl

The UK @UKMinistryofDefence #Defence Science and #Technology Laboratory (Dstl) has hosted the UK’s first high-powered, long-range #Laser Directed Energy Weapon (LDEW) trial on its ranges at Porton Down. The trials involve firing the UK #DragonFire demonstrator at a number of targets over a number of ranges, demanding pinpoint accuracy from the beam director. The trial improves the UK’s understanding of how high-energy lasers and their associated technologies can operate over distance and defeat representative targets. The ability to deliver high levels of laser power with sufficient accuracy are two of the major areas that need to be demonstrated in order to provide confidence in the performance and viability of LDEW systems. The programme has developed a UK Sovereign ‘Centre of Excellence’ staffed with experts from multiple fields. LDEW have the potential to provide lower cost lethality, reduced logistical burden and increased effectiveness when compared to other weapon systems – the