During the demonstration the solid state
laser technology maturation Laser Weapon System Demonstrator (LWSD) Mark II Mod 0
aboard portland successfully engaged a
static surface training target. Portland previously tested the LWSD in
may 2020 when it successfully disabled a
small unmanned aerial system while
operating in the pacific ocean.
The office of naval research selected
portland to host the laser weapon
technology in 2018. The LWSD is considered a next generation
follow-on to the Laser Weapon System (LAWS) at a float-forward staging base USS Pons AFSV I -15 tested for three years
while operating in the middle east.
Portland is part of the essex amphibious
ready group that includes amphibious
assault ship USS Essex, LHD-2 dock landing
ship uss pearl harbor, LSD-52 and
embarked marines from the 11th marine
expeditionary unit. The units departed San Diego in august
and began operating in the u.s fifth
fleet region in september.
The region's geography climate and
strategic importance offer a unique
environment for technology innovation. US5th fleet's area of operations
includes the world's largest standing
maritime partnership, Arabian Gulf, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Gulf of Oman and parts
of the Indian Ocean.
Recently the u.s army is demonstrating a
300 kilowatt laser weapon its most
powerful ever next year. General Atomic's Electromagnetic Systems (GAMES) and boeing are building the device
which is the size of a shipping
container and mounted on a heavy truck. The high power compact laser weapon will
produce a lethal output greater than
anything fielded to date, scott forney
president of gaanes said in a statement.
The u.s navy deployed the first
high-energy laser weapon known as laws
on the uss ponce in 2014 with a reported
30 kilowatt output. Most military lasers tend to be in the
30 to the 100 kilowatt range which is
mainly useful for shooting down small
drones, so the new weapon is a
significant increase. Typically such weapons are based on
multiple industrial fiber lasers with
the output combined into a single beam.
The new weapon instead uses large slabs
of glass connected in series, such slabs have previously been hard to
use due to waste heat and issues with
beam quality but gaam says connecting
them in series solves these issues and
removes the need to combine beams from
multiple fiber lasers. The new laser is part of a u.s army
project to develop defensive lasers that
can shoot down incoming threats. Last year it demonstrated a 10 kilowatt
laser defeating small mortar rounds.
Justin Bronk at uk security think tank
royal united services institute says the
more powerful laser can take on bigger
targets as well as engage multiple
targets in quick succession. It will allow the system to engage a
greater density of incoming threats and
also potentially engage threats which
offer a shorter engagement window either
due to speed or very low altitude flight
trajectory, ays Bronc. This might allow the laser to defend
against ballistic and cruise missiles as
well as drones, aircraft and helicopters, he says.
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