by Anna Ahronheim
Trials over several days were led by the Defense Ministry's Research and Development unit.
Israel MoD Successfully Completes its First-Ever Series of Interception Tests Employing an Airborne, High-Power Laser System
The Defense Ministry has successfully carried out a series of
interceptions to shoot down drones with a powerful airborne laser system
installed on a civilian light aircraft.
The
trials were carried out over a number of days last week under the
leadership of the ministry’s Research and Development unit together with
Elbit Systems and the Israel Air Force.
During
the trials that were carried out over the sea, the high-powered laser
fired from a civilian Cessna plane destroyed the unmanned targets at
differing ranges and altitudes.
According
to the Defense Ministry, Israel is perhaps the first country in the
world to have been able to use such laser technology on an aircraft to
intercept targets in an operational simulation.
“This
is the first time in Israel, perhaps the world, that this was done,”
said Brig.-Gen. Yaniv Rotem, head of military research and development
at the Ministry of Defense. “This is a groundbreaking technological
achievement and is a critical step for further development.”
According
to Rotem, the fully-automated energy system uses the laser to destroy
an acquired target while flying above the clouds, the “powerful and
precise system” can intercept the target “regardless of weather
conditions.”
Once a
target passes through the area of interest, the system can be directed
at any part of it with very high accuracy. It locks on and remains
locked on until the target is downed.
A UAV used in an IAF test of an airborne High-Power Laser Weapon System. (MINISTRY OF DEFENSE SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICE) The
trials are the first phase in a multi-year pilot program of the Defense
Ministry’s Administration for the Development of Weapons and
Technological Infrastructure (MAFAT) and Elbit Systems to develop an
aerial laser system to confront a number of threats facing Israel,
including long-range rockets. This system will not be used against
incendiary balloons from Gaza.
Airborne
laser targeting has many advantages, including a low cost of use, the
ability to effectively intercept long-range threats at high altitude
regardless of weather conditions and the ability to defend large areas.
Rotem
said that in upcoming trials the hope is to install the system on a
larger aircraft, and then on other aerial platforms. While the system
will be used initially for defense, it will also be used in offensive
scenarios.
Rotem
said that during the trials, several UAVs were downed at a range of 1
km. with a 100% success rate and in a few years the ministry aims to
build a laser with a power of 100 kilowatts that will have an effective
range of 20 km.
A
ground laser system under development will be operational in three to
four years and the airborne system in eight to 10 years, Rotem said,
adding that in another decade, it is hoped that such a system could
destroy targets hundreds of kilometers away.
Last
year, the ministry launched three programs to develop high-energy laser
demonstration systems in cooperation with the two companies: a
ground-based laser system to complement the capabilities of the Iron
Dome missile interceptor, a maneuverable platform-mounted laser to
defend troops in the field, and a laser demo system mounted on an aerial
platform to intercept threats above cloud cover and for the defense of
wide areas.
Rotem
said the ground system will also be able to destroy targets at a range
of 8-10 km. with a 100 kW laser. The ministry is aiming for an
operational system by 2024 to be deployed at the Gaza border area for
shooting down rockets.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz congratulated MAFAT, Elbit and the IAF on the technological breakthrough.
Israel
MoD Successfully Completes its First-Ever Series of Interception Tests
Employing an Airborne, High-Power Laser System (Credit: MINISTRY OF
DEFENSE SPOKESPERSON'S OFFICE)“Today,
you have brought us closer to yet another important milestone in the
development of the multi-tier defense array of the State of Israel and
it is significant both in terms of cost-effectiveness and defense
capabilities,” he said. “The
laser system will add a new layer of protection at greater ranges and
in facing a variety of threats – securing the State of Israel while
saving costs of interception. I am confident that Israel’s defense
industry will succeed in this important development program, and I will
work personally together with the entire defense establishment to ensure
its success.”
The
Defense Ministry hopes that the airborne system will further increase
the effectiveness of Israel’s air defenses against existing and future
threats and it is expected to complement Israel’s multi-tier missile
defense array, which includes the Iron Dome, David’s Sling and Arrow
missile interceptors.
Anna Ahronheim
Source: https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/israel-successfully-downs-targets-using-airborne-laser-system-671638
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