LWI - Land Warfare
UK to assess laser weapon potential
The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) is set to embark on a high energy laser demonstration programme, with a £30 million contract being finalised with an industrial team, UK Dragonfire, led by MBDA. MBDA made the announcement on 16 September in a company statement.
The contract will see the team carry out the Laser Directed Energy Weapons (DEW) Capability Demonstrator programme. The programme will mature the key technologies for a high energy defensive laser weapon system and will culminate in the engagement of representative targets in land and maritime environments in a 2019 demonstration. It will also provide the body of evidence for future procurement decisions.
Led by MBDA, the UK Dragonfire consortium includes QinetiQ and Leonardo-Finmeccanica, with support from GKN, Arke, BAE Systems and Marshall ADG.
The UK Dragonfire proposal builds on MoD and industry investment in the areas of laser coherent beam combining, weapon systems command and control, advanced pointing systems and high power storage.
Dave Armstrong executive group director technical and UK managing director, MBDA, said: ‘Under MBDA’s lead, UK Dragonfire will put the UK at the forefront of high energy laser systems, capitalising on the experience of joint MoD/industry working in the complex weapons environment. Furthermore it advances the UK towards a future product with significant export potential, as well as providing opportunities for partnerships with other nations’ armed forces that have similar requirements.’
More from Land Warfare
-
Ajax nears delivery to British Army
General Dynamics Land Systems UK (GDUK) is preparing for initial deliveries of the first Ajax variants to the British Army, with government acceptance testing (GAT) ...
-
DSEI 2017: BAE shows off new CV90 turret (video)
BAE Systems showcased its CV90 IFV at DSEI in London equipped with its latest generation E30 turret which includes a Spike LR missile launcher system, a 30mm ...
-
DSEI 2017: MKU highlights soldier modernisation system (video)
Indian company, MKU, displayed its range for body armour, helmets and optics equipment at DSEI 2017 in London. Shephard spoke with Neeraj Gupta, managing director at ...
-
Turkey firms Russian S-400 contract
The much-discussed sale of the S-400 Triumf (SA-21 Growler) long-range SAM system to Turkey has been officially contracted. The signing - acknowledged by the FSVTS, Russia’s ...
-
Raytheon receives Boomerang order
Raytheon BBN Technologies has received a contract to deliver Boomerang Warrior-X systems to an undisclosed Gulf nation, the company announced on 15 September.The contract, worth ...
-
DSEI 2017: Army Land Ceptor configuration unveiled
The British Army’s new air defence system, Land Ceptor, was on display at this year's DSEI exhibition ahead of first deliveries expected in the first ...