The Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) conducted tests on the High Energy Laser Weapon System (HELWS). The first laser weapon test in the U.K. occurred at the Dstl training station near Porton Down. This laser weapon was successful in taking down a light drone.
Raytheon U.K. Company's HELWS is a lightweight, portable system.
This integration represents a big step forward for the U.K. Ministry of Defense's Land Laser Directed Energy Weapon (LDEW) Demonstrator program. The goal of this transportable laser weapon concept is to confront the growing menace of drone warfare in the air.
This HELWS type is intended to neutralise unmanned aircraft and is interoperable with current air defence systems such as radar, command and control, and other platforms.
