Drone Killer. Drone Killer. LiveLeak.com - Redefining the Media. Powerful laser weapon system is a drone-killer. Predator drones may have met their match. The latest warning shot that the laser technology is on the cusp of radically redefining warfare comes via reports that the German defense firm Rheinmetall has developed an enemy-zapping prototype capable of shooting down elusive drones from over a mile away. The successful field-testing of this particular weapon is significant for a number of reasons. While long-range high energy lasers (HEL) have shown enormous potential as a game-changer on the battlefield, they've also been hampered by something as simple as changing weather. For instance, a focused beam, while powerful, can easily be absorbed or scattered by moisture in the air as it passes through the atmosphere.
Rheinmetall said the 50kW weapon they designed and built was tested in extreme environmental conditions such as snow, rain and blinding sunlight to showcase how much progress has been made compared to a 10kW version demonstrated last year. More sci-fi weapons: The Army's Truck-Mounted Laser Is a Certified Drone Killer. The US military loves drones and lasers, so naturally it plans on mounting lasers on drones. Of course, they don't always mix: For the first time, the Army successfully used a laser to shoot down a UAV, along with a host of other targets. During testing at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, the Army Space and Missile Defense Command used a truck-mounted laser system to destroy dozens of flying mortar rounds and multiple UAVs during a month of testing that concluded last week. The system, known as the High Energy Laser Mobile Demonstrator (HEL MD), is currently powered by a 10 kilowatt solid-state laser, which now appears to be enough to counter small targets.
According to an Army release, things will only get bigger from here, with a 50 kW class laser coming "in the future," with a 100 kW laser to follow. HEL MD's laser beam has a circumference of about a quarter, per the Christian Science Monitor. The US military isn't the only force interested in laser weapons. @derektmead. Barrett Unveils Drone-Killing Rifle. Among the firearms creating the most buzz at this year’s Modern Day Marine show was a version of Barrett’s M107A1, a shoulder-fired rifle designed to shoot drones out of the sky with hulking 25mm rounds. It’s billed as an “anti-UAV” weapon, referring to the military acronym for unmanned aerial vehicles. The rifle reminded more than a couple of Marines of a scene from the 2012 movie, “The Bourne Legacy,” in which the hero, Aaron Cross (played by the actor Jeremy Renner) shoots down a Predator drone with a sniper rifle. In reality, the M107A1 has a range of up to 2,000 meters and is designed to take out low-altitude drones — those that can fly as high as 10,000 feet or so.
(The Predator is a medium-altitude drone that can soar up to 25,000 feet.) The semi-automatic, anti-material rifle can fire a 5-round magazine of 25mm cartridges and weighs 33 pounds. Barrett, based in Murfreesboro, Tenn., has built several of the rifles, some of which have been used by U.S. Powerful laser weapon system is a drone-killer.