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Lockheed Martin delivers HELIOS laser weapon to U.S. Navy
This system is designed to defeat drone, small speed boats (like the bulk of Iran's "navy,") and maybe incoming missiles.
More powerful lasers are on the way.HELIOS, designed in a $150 million contract with Lockheed Martin, is designed to "burn the boats," or unmanned drones, with a high-energy laser beam.
It follows a 2019 demonstration of laser power, although with half the wattage of the device announced on Monday, aboard the amphibious transport dock USS Ponce.
The scalable laser design architecture combines multiple kilowatt fiber lasers to attain high beam quality at various power levels, according to Lockheed officials.
HELIOS was designed as a weapon capable of burning small speed boats, notably of the type the Iranian military deploys in armed groups, as well as unmanned aerial vehicles.
It can also merely "dazzle" a UAV's electro-optical sensors, damaging them and preventing them from performing their missions.
The system can be used as an alternative to firing missiles or other projectiles at enemy craft, and can theoretically fire an unlimited number of laser blasts at targets.
HELIOS is one of a number of laser weapons the Navy is currently working to develop.
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Originally Posted by RMNIXON
