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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran | |||
| Navy Deploying Laser Weapon Prototype Near Iran | |||
| 2013-04-09 | |||
WASHINGTON — The Navy is going to sea for the first time with a laser attack weapon that has been shown in tests to disable patrol boats and blind or destroy surveillance drones.
The laser will not be operational until next year, but the announcement on Monday by Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert, the chief of naval operations, seemed meant as a warning to Iran not to step up activity in the gulf in the next few months if tensions increase because of sanctions and the impasse in negotiations over the Iranian nuclear program. The Navy released video and still images of the laser weapon burning through a drone during a test firing.
The Pentagon has a long history of grossly inflating claims for its experimental weapons,
“Equipping Navy surface ships with lasers could lead to changes in naval tactics, ship design and procurement plans for ship-based weapons, bringing about a technological shift for the Navy — a ‘game changer’ — comparable to the advent of shipboard missiles in the 1950s,” said the assessment, by the Congressional Research Service, a branch of the Library of Congress. The study found that the new high-energy laser “could provide Navy surface ships with a more cost-effective means of countering certain surface, air and ballistic missile targets.” Among the limitations, according to the research service, is that lasers are not effective in bad weather because the beam can be disturbed or scattered by water vapor, as well as by smoke, sand and dust. It is also a “line of sight” weapon, meaning that the target has to be visible, so it cannot handle threats over the horizon. And enemies can take countermeasures like coating vessels and drones with reflective surfaces. Navy officials acknowledge that the first prototype weapon to be deployed is not powerful enough to take on jet fighters or missiles on their approach. That capability is a goal of researchers. Among the advantages cited in the study for Congress was the low cost — less than $1 per sustained pulse — of using a high-energy laser against certain targets. By comparison, current short-range air-defense interceptor missiles cost up to $1.4 million each. The laser weapon also has a limitless supply of ammunition — pulses of high energy — so long as the ship can generate electricity. The beam can reach its target at the speed of light and can track fast-moving targets. Rear Adm. Matthew L. Klunder, the chief of naval research, said the high-energy laser system was developed as part of the Navy’s search for “new, innovative, disruptive technologies.” In essence, the Navy is trying to harness technological advances in battling adversaries that are thinking of inventive ways to counter American power. Admiral Klunder said the weapon had destroyed targets in all 12 of its field tests. The laser prototype cost just under $32 million, officials said. But if the weapon proves itself during its sea trials, and the order is given to buy the laser system for service across the fleet, the price per unit is expected to drop. Rear Adm. Thomas J. Eccles, the deputy commander for naval systems engineering, said the first laser device would be deployed on the Ponce, which serves as a floating base for military operations and humanitarian assistance in the waters of the Middle East and southwestern Asia. | |||
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #14 The US may have to deploy something since the USN Fifth Fleet may NOT have the USAF as backup due to the Sequester. * FOX NEWS this AM [PARAPH]> USAF TO GROUND ONE-THIRD OF ITS ACTIVE-DUTY AIRCRAFT DUE TO SEQUESTER-LED BUDGET CUTS. The FlyBoyz for the same reason also have to reduce their flight-time by 45,000 hours. On the US NAVY'S part, their highly popular "BLUE ANGELS" have lost the remainder of their season of scheduled events. MY BAD VIBES AS PER CHINA-VS-JAPAN-VS-DEBT/SEQUESTER-RIDDEN-US CONTINUES THIS AM. * FYI YONHAP NEWS > SOUTH KOREA SHOULD WEIGN DEPARTURE FROM NPT, LAWMAKER [Rep. Chung Mong-joon] SAYS. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2013-04-09 19:42 |
| #13 Thanks Steve, for some reason, Seaman Scottie running amok on the bridge never crossed my mind. Nimble, yes the reactors will build a lot of power, but it only takes a disrupted circuit (or two) to kill the flow of electrons. and with the Navy's big push to automate many tasks will reduce manning, that means fewer Damage Control parties, or fire teams or just warm bodies to do the dirty crap. think what the Forrestal fire would have done if the manp0wer wasn't there to replace the primary teams when they got blown away by the exploding ordnance. Being a participant in the 1988 Nimitz fire, i can tell you that there was nobody not actively engaged in some capacity. fewer men, greater reliance on automation, and you will be looking at some holes in the water where a man of war once rode. ( and that doesn't even invoke shades of HAL 9000, going rogue due to bad 'trons). sorry for the rant, but i do not expect this to end well. |
| Posted by: USN, Ret. 2013-04-09 16:21 |
| #12 BWEW BWEW! |
| Posted by: newc 2013-04-09 13:21 |
| #11 The reactor on the Ford will generate 50% more power than the Nimitz class. While some of this will go to the catapults and radars, I suspect there's amperage to spare for whatever weapons systems evolve. More reason to doubt the recent rash of "the carrier is obsolete" articles. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2013-04-09 11:31 |
| #10 hard to think about laser weapons without think of Dr Evil |
| Posted by: lord garth 2013-04-09 09:56 |
| #9 I don't think the lasers are going to replace the guns and missiles. They look more like point defense syzems, like the current Phalanx CIWS. The main guns will eventually be replaced with rail guns. Those will draw a massive amount of power. |
| Posted by: Rambler in Virginia 2013-04-09 09:47 |
| #8 Probably something in the range of the GeneraciX-800. |
| Posted by: Waldemar Turkeyneck6888 2013-04-09 09:08 |
| #7 The Navy released video and still images of the laser weapon burning through a drone during a test firing. Is it like the Iran pictures of multiple missile launches? i see overloads being not rare occurrences. I want to see the battery needed to jump start that sucker. Pulling a CVN along side, dead in the water, would make a very tempting big target. ;) |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2013-04-09 08:21 |
| #6 I'm pretty sure that shooting those curly-fried light bulbs at the enemy would violate the Geneva Conventions - chemical weapons of mass destruction, you know. |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2013-04-09 07:53 |
| #5 the EPA will crack down and demand only fluorescent laser bulbs |
| Posted by: Frank G 2013-04-09 07:35 |
| #4 You made me smile, USN Ret. I started thinking of the bridge of the Starship Enterprise with all the circuit breakers popping, sparks flying, and people hurtling about during an attack. We might get there sooner than we think! |
| Posted by: Steve White 2013-04-09 07:24 |
| #3 The laser weapon also has a "limitless supply of ammunition" Appears to be an administration prerequisite these days. |
| Posted by: Besoeker 2013-04-09 06:38 |
| #2 The laser weapon also has a limitless supply of ammunition — pulses of high energy — so long as the ship can generate electricity. OK, so call me skeptical; with the shift in design philosophy away from carbon based fuels to electricity to power the entire damn ship, isn't this afterthought likely to impact other functions or what happens when all the powder based guns are pulled off and these lasers are put in place? i see overloads being not rare occurences. and if an ordnance elevator breaks down, manpower can move the ordnance to the guns, its really hard to carry a bucket of volts for this thing. And lastly, please tell me Boeing isn't involved with this.although they could get us to the failure and fire state sooner. |
| Posted by: USN, Ret. 2013-04-09 00:46 |
| #1 Over to IRAN once the testing is complete in Guam??? |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2013-04-09 00:12 |
