The US has been playing with these kinds of lasers for over a decade now. Last I saw a demonstration, the laser wasn’t powerful enough to just zap something. It had to focus on a warhead and heat it up until it exploded. It wouldn’t work on a missile in flight. Maybe they improved it, but I suspect the introduction of slow drones like the Iranian Shahed made it feasible.
The cost per shot was pennies a decade ago. But how fast can they shoot these? It must be able to shoot fast and constantly if you want to deal with swarms.
The US has been playing with these kinds of lasers for over a decade now. Last I saw a demonstration, the laser wasn’t powerful enough to just zap something. It had to focus on a warhead and heat it up until it exploded. It wouldn’t work on a missile in flight. Maybe they improved it, but I suspect the introduction of slow drones like the Iranian Shahed made it feasible.
The cost per shot was pennies a decade ago. But how fast can they shoot these? It must be able to shoot fast and constantly if you want to deal with swarms.