This laser-armed Stryker vehicle can shoot down drones and mortar rounds
The purpose of the high-energy laser is to provide a defensive weapon against incoming threats. Here's how it all works.
BY KELSEY D. ATHERTON | PUBLISHED MAY 19, 2022 7:00 PM
In the sun-scorched desert of White Sands Missile Range, a Raytheon-built laser weapon mounted on an armored vehicle shot down multiple mortar rounds over four weeks of testing, the company announced May 16. The testing, part of an Army program to develop new kinds of defenses against flying projectiles and other threats, also involved the laser defeating a range of drones. The demonstration is part of a growing effort to ensure that on future battlefields, troops can be protected from the range of attacks they are likely to face.
Raytheon describes its directed energy weapon as a 50 kilowatt-class high-energy laser. The company worked with defense contractor KBR’s subsidiary Kord to integrate that laser on a Stryker combat vehicle. Strykers are eight-wheeled armored transports, operated by a crew of two and with room for 9 troops to ride inside. The body of the vehicle is flexible enough that the US Army has adapted it for a variety of roles, including as the base platform for an array of already existing anti-air weapons.
This role is called “Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense,” or M-SHORAD, and it is currently performed by Strykers featuring a turret that can launch Stinger anti-air missiles and Hellfire missiles, both of which can be used against tanks and aircraft as well. This is in addition to a 30-mm cannon and a regular machine gun, as well as sensors that help it find targets.
https://www.popsci.com/technology/army-tests-laser-armed-stryker-vehicle/
