During tests held at the US Army's White Sands training ground in New Mexico, a laser system designed to protect ground troops from drones and aircraft successfully shot down several artillery mines in flight. This is reported by Popular Mechanics magazine, referring to a press release from Raytheon.
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| Created by Raytheon, a 50-kilowatt combat laser module mounted on a Stryker combat vehicle,. |
| Source: JIM KENDALL/U.S. ARMY |
The relevant tests were carried out during the Directed Energy Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense (DE M-SHORAD) program, within the framework of which a directed energy weapon is being developed — it should become part of a promising short-range air defense system.
It is noted that the 50-kilowatt combat laser module created by Raytheon, installed on the Stryker combat vehicle, successfully detected, tracked and destroyed several flying 60-millimeter artillery mines. The US Army should receive the first four such installations this year.
Popular Mechanics notes that it is unknown whether the DE M-SHORAD complex will be effective against 122-millimeter shells of the 9P132 Grad-P installation and several flying artillery mines at once.
In May, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov spoke about the use by the Russian Armed Forces during a special military operation to protect Donbass of the laser complex "Badass", capable of destroying targets at a distance of five kilometers.