Laser 'more real than Star Wars'

Raytheon

SHIELDS UP: A mock-up of the laser weapon in action.

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Yet another sci-fi geek dream has been turned into reality, with the US Navy demonstrating a laser capable of shooting down moving targets.

Defence technology company Raytheon Missile Systems teamed up with the US Navy to unveil the high-powered laser weapon at the Farnborough Air Show in Hampshire this week.

In secret tests the laser was capable of shooting down four unmanned aerical vehicles (UAVs) mid-flight.

The weapon, which will be used by the Navy as a last line of defence, is made up of six industrial-use lasers that simultanously focus on the target. The beam is rated at 50 kilowatts and it can be used to shoot down planes, mortar, rockets and small surface ships.

"The Raytheon-Navy team demonstrated the systems' capability to detect, track, engage and defeat dynamic targets at tactically significant ranges in a maritime environment," said Taylor Lawrence, president of Raytheon Missile Systems.

His colleague, Mike Booen, put it more succinctly at the Farnborough Air Show: "This is more real than Star Wars."

Peter Felstead, edtior of Jane's Defence Weekly, told BBC News that this was just the beginning of what we can expect to see in terms of laser warfare.

"OK, so a UAV isn't armoured, nor is it flying fast, but as you can see from the video they shot it down in flames," he said.

This isn't the first time technology originally seen in the movies has made its way into the real world.

Controlling computers using gestures, touch and voice was demonstrated in the Tom Cruise film Minority Report and it is now being adopted by consumer electronics makers including Microsoft.

Raytheon has been approached for comment on whether it would be marketing the technology to Australian defence organisations.

- © Fairfax NZ News