FARNBOROUGH—Raytheon UK has carried out the first firings of an anti-uncrewed aircraft system laser that is envisaged for the close protection of troops on the battlefield.
The company’s Project Swinton laser directed-energy weapon demonstrator has been successfully fired against fixed targets at the Defense Science Technology Laboratory (DSTL) at Porton Down, England, successfully hitting targets 1.4 km away, company executives told Aviation Week at the Royal International Air Tattoo on the eve of the Farnborough Airshow here.
The 15-kW laser uses Raytheon’s High-Energy Laser Weapon System (HELWS) developed in the U.S. but integrated with a UK-produced command-and-control system and a Blighter search radar. The system is then fitted onto a six-wheel Wolfhound Protected Patrol Vehicle, although it also is small enough to be mounted on a two-seat buggy.
“One of the things that Raytheon UK is really good at is taking an element of U.S. capability and [intellectual property] and anglicizing to meet UK requirements,” said James Gray, Raytheon UK’s chief executive. The company was contracted in 2021 for the UK Defense Ministry’s Land Laser Directed-Energy Weapon (LDEW) demonstrator program.
Other partners in the project include Frazer Nash, NP Aerospace, LumOptica and Cambridge Pixel.
The trials tested the laser’s command-and-control system against active flying objects to prove tracking capability, but future trials will see the laser engaging moving airborne targets.
Proponents hope the project could follow the same path as the MBDA-led Dragonfire initiative, which the previous government selected for further development as a naval defense weapon, accelerating the introduction of directed-energy weapons onto the front line.
“We're looking to evolve this concept demonstrator with a stronger commitment from the [UK Defense Ministry], and that will be our focus now that we've worked with DSTL and proved that this system is ready to go,” Gray added.
“Given what we've learned in Ukraine over the past two years—that counter-UAS is a significant and persistent threat—the need for high-energy laser weapon systems will become a likely requirement in the air defense portfolio,” Gray said.
HELWS already has been certified for use in combat with U.S. forces, with multiple systems now in service. The system has logged more than 40,000 testing hours and downed more than 400 targets.
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