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xchrom

(108,903 posts)
Tue Apr 9, 2013, 09:17 AM Apr 2013

US Navy Shows Off Laser Cannon That Can Shoot Down Drones

http://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-shows-off-laser-cannon-that-can-shoot-down-drones-2013-4



The US Navy says it is preparing to roll out a sea-based laser weapon capable of disabling small enemy vessels and shooting down surveillance drones in what is being hailed as a potential "game-changer".

The laser system will be deployed in 2014, two years ahead of schedule, aboard the USS Ponce, an amphibious transport ship retrofitted as a waterborne staging base, the Navy said Monday.

Chief of Naval Research Admiral Matthew Klunder said the cost of one blast of "directed energy" could be less than $1.

"Compare that to the hundreds of thousands of dollars it costs to fire a missile, and you can begin to see the merits of this capability," he said in a US Navy statement.


Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-shows-off-laser-cannon-that-can-shoot-down-drones-2013-4#ixzz2PyJeNs7M
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US Navy Shows Off Laser Cannon That Can Shoot Down Drones (Original Post) xchrom Apr 2013 OP
we need to build a death star. loli phabay Apr 2013 #1
Bogus statistic, $1. Equipment needs maintenance, capacitors replacing, etc. However, has a point.nt Bernardo de La Paz Apr 2013 #2
Just like those antimissile tests. hobbit709 Apr 2013 #3

hobbit709

(41,694 posts)
3. Just like those antimissile tests.
Tue Apr 9, 2013, 10:12 AM
Apr 2013

flying in a straight line, broadcasting IFF for targeting lockon, etc.

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