The U.S. Army says development of a powerful new laser weapon prototype is underway, which will enhance the military’s ability to detect and destroy small unmanned aerial systems (UAS).
The Army announced that HII’s Mission Technologies division was selected to lead the new effort in building the prototype, as concerns about the use of drones in combat continue to rise.
The Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office (RCCTO) awarded the project a contract, tasking HII with the design of an open-architecture high-energy laser (HEL) system capable of both fixed-location defense and vehicle coupling.
A High-Energy Laser with Wide Capabilities
The ambitious new effort aims to be capable of countering Group 1-3 threats, which covers potential threats ranging from small quadcopter-style UAVs to larger, tactical drones in use by militaries, which have seen increased use in recent years.
Grant Hagen, president of HII’s Mission Technologies’ Warfare Systems group, said in a company statement that his team plans to produce a scalable counter-UAS weapon that will meet all the potential demands of the battlefield.
“We are proud to provide a critical enabler for the Army, delivering an effective, interoperable, sustainable and scalable system that will meet force protection requirements and support U.S. strategic objectives,” Hagen said.
Adaptable Weaponry for Counter-Drone Defense
HII says its HEL prototype is being developed using a Modular Open Systems Approach. This design will help provide the Army with an adaptable system, with replaceable subsystems, software, and other technologies that can be removed, updated, and replaced as technologies—or potential threats—evolve.
Right now, the company is also planning to provide critical data as the program continues development, which will support future innovation among potential providers for the subsystems the new HEL weaponry will incorporate, all of which meet the military’s current efforts to combine affordability and interoperability with rapid innovation, as well as supply chain resilience.
Following the development stage, the new laser weapon is slated to undergo field testing, which will help HII specialists gauge its strength and safety for operations in wartime environments. If all goes according to plan during the testing phase, the system will progress to low-rate initial production under the Army’s Program Executive Office for Missiles and Space.
Drone Incidents on the Rise
Recent years have seen a significant increase in the use of UAS capabilities for military operations, especially throughout the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine.
Late last year, a spate of mysterious drone incidents occurred over U.S. air bases in the United Kingdom, followed by widespread media coverage involving purported drone sightings over northeastern U.S. states like New Jersey and New York.
Although many of the sightings last year were resolved to have been misidentifications of conventional aircraft, lawfully operated civilian and police drones, and celestial objects, a joint assessment released by the Department of Defense, FBI, Department of Homeland Security, and the Federal Aviation Administration did concede that there had been several unauthorized drone incursions over U.S. military facilities.
A series of drones observed over Wright Patterson Air Force Base last November ultimately closed the airspace over the base for several hours. Just weeks earlier, The Debrief learned of similar incursions that were confirmed by military officials at Picatinny Arsenal in New Jersey, where several unauthorized drones were observed operating near the base.
Unauthorized drone incursions have also been reported in many other countries over the last several years, including Germany, with recent observations also reported by officials in Denmark and France. Some military and police officials in those countries have called for defensive actions against the aircraft if they are observed entering controlled airspace.
Although the U.S. Department of Defense has suggested that hobbyists may have piloted some of the objects observed near American military sites, some experts have expressed concerns about the potential use of drones for espionage or other activities that may present U.S. national security challenges.
A Cutting-Edge Laser Weapon for Tomorrow’s Battlefield
With rising demands for defense capabilities against UAS systems, HII’s current efforts complement the military’s broader focus on delivering cutting-edge defense solutions across all domains.
Headquartered in Virginia, the company is presently the nation’s largest military shipbuilder and employs more than 44,000 personnel. Although confirmed for stationary land and vehicular mounted use, it is unclear whether the new prototype laser weapon will also be equipped for use at sea by Navy vessels.
In January, Navy Admiral Daryl Caudle, commander of US Fleet Forces Command, said while speaking with reporters that “There’s been many a thesis and dissertation written on building lasers on ships,” though adding that “we’ve not transitioned that into a place where that’s an acceptable way to actually take out missile systems.”
With unmanned aerial threats continuing to evolve, the U.S. Army’s recent investments in high-energy laser technology reflect a move toward adaptable, next-generation defense systems, and signal efforts to come that will likely focus on rapid innovation and scalable counter-drone capabilities as essential components of battlefield readiness.
Micah Hanks is the Editor-in-Chief and Co-Founder of The Debrief. He can be reached by email at micah@thedebrief.org. Follow his work at micahhanks.com and on X: @MicahHanks.