British Military’s New Laser Destroys Drone
The British military is one step closer to deploying lasers onto the battlefield after a successful test of its new anti-drone DragonFire directed energy system.
The British Ministry of Defense announced the successful firing of the directed-energy weapon system on Friday, Jan. 19.
The DragonFire system took out an aerial drone while it was in flight, the first time it had done so.
An image shared by the British MOD even gives a striking look at DragonFire in action, with a bright beam of light taking out the drone.
It looks less like Star Wars or Star Trek and more like an actual beam of fire.
The British military is pursuing this project as an effective and cost-efficient way to counter the growing threat of drones and drone swarms. The exact range of DragonFire has not been announced, but according to the British MOD it can hit a coin a kilometer away and function as a line-of-sight weapon.
More importantly, it’s cheap. Much cheaper than any missile that would currently be used. According to developers, the operation cost is “typically less than £10 per shot.”
“This type of cutting-edge weaponry has the potential to revolutionize the battlespace by reducing the reliance on expensive ammunition, while also lowering the risk of collateral damage,” British Defense Secretary Grant Shapp said in a statement.
The laser program is a joint venture between the British MOD and British industry, with more than $100 million invested into it. The DragonFire project was publicly announced in 2017, but it’s taken years of tests and experiments to reach this achievement.
Last year there were a series of trials of the system, which this week’s test built on. The project still has extensive more testing to do before any DragonFire system is fitted to a Royal Navy ship out on deployment, however.
Militaries around the world have been developing strategies both for using drones in combat and countering them. The United States has tested everything from hand-held anti-drone jamming riffles to conventional weapons (and used the latter in the Red Sea).
In Ukraine, where commercial and military-grade drones are used by both Ukrainian and Russian forces, the two armies have tried jamming them, shooting them with rockets and bullets and even using drones to crash into each other.
The United Kingdom isn’t alone in exploring directed-energy weapons for anti-drone purposes. The U.S. military has been developing its own programs, although more focused on microwave emitting devices.
Those include the Air Force’s Tactical High-power Operational Responder (THOR) and an Army program that’s moving ahead.
The British meanwhile have a working laser that looks like a beam of dragon fire when fired. All of the systems are still in development, but show just how much militaries are focused on finding cheaper ways to take out drones and drone swarms.
But the DragonFire test suggests that the most cost-effective way to take out high-tech drones might be a high-tech laser.
Modern problems require modern solutions.
See more here taskandpurpose.com
Header image: Ministry of Defence
Please Donate Below To Support Our Ongoing Work To Defend The Scientific Method
PRINCIPIA SCIENTIFIC INTERNATIONAL, legally registered in the UK as a company 
incorporated for charitable purposes. Head Office: 27 Old Gloucester Street, London WC1N 3AX.
Trackback from your site.
Ken Hughes
| #
Surely this weapon has even more potential. With a tracking system and a laser beam travelling at the speed of light, it should easy to destroy any missile, ballistic or hypersonic.
Reply
Howdy
| #
In the absence of details, supposing the target contains anti-laser measures such as servo positioned prisms, or reflectors? Deflect the beam, possibly back to the source?
10 quid per shot. what is the developmental cost?
What is speed of repetition of deployment?
Reply
Cal Aylmer
| #
so I guess this means us “conspiracy theorists” reading all about this stuff over the last few years noting the places around the place they laser shit off the map for practice runs, once again have been vindicated now its reached officialdom huh. Lasers DO EXIST and they didn’t just get made, tested and brought into the battlefield since last Thursday!. I accept everyones appology who called me a nut job influenced by mis and dis information.
Now, how about relooking at The Northwest territories “wildfire due to climate change” and tell me what made the perfect black circles around each building.? >
DRONE FOOTAGE OF ENTERPRISE NWT CANADA 2023 “WILDFIRE”
TRAMPOLINE UNTOUCHED TREES OK BUILDINGS WHITE POWDER
charred perfect circles around leveled buildings……and more. OPEN YOUR EYES.
https://www.bbc.com/news/av/world-us-canada-66568903
Reply
Howdy
| #
“An image shared by the British MOD”
Nobody else seen it happen then? How convenient.
“All of the systems are still in development, but show just how much militaries are focused on finding cheaper ways to take out drones and drone swarms.”
Drones are not stable buildings.
I think you mean something like this:
Notice the craft, and people outside of the beam are affected.
Doesn’t sound like conspiracy theorists should claim victory just yet.
Reply
Howdy
| #
not affected…
Reply