The trial
The laser directed energy weapon (LDEW) system developed by the DragonFire team, incorporating QinetiQ's world-leading laser source technology, has achieved the first successful high-power firing of a laser weapon against aerial targets in the UK during a trial at the QinetiQ managed MOD Hebrides Range in October 2023.
This latest trial, delivered by Dstl (Defence, Science & Technology Laboratory), alongside our DragonFire partners - MBDA and Leonardo - builds on a series of highly successful trials, including the first static high-power laser firing of a sovereign UK capability and demonstration of the DragonFire system's ability to track moving air and sea targets with great accuracy at long range.
The DragonFire weapon system is the result of a £100 million joint investment by industry and the UK MOD, and together the companies involved are supporting highly skilled UK jobs in new cutting-edge technologies that are delivering a significant step-change in the UK's capability in LDEW systems.
QinetiQ teams in the UK came together to deliver the exercise, from the system integration and pre-trial testing in Farnborough to the planning and successful safe execution of the trial at MOD Hebrides. The trial itself demonstrated the full end-to-end capability of the system linking each of the activities, which had previously been conducted in isolation, with the addition of the first high power above the horizon firing. Over the course of several weeks, the trial progressed from tracking a Banshee target, to engaging it at low power and finally the high power laser firings. The unique nature of the MOD Hebrides Range, which offers 115,000 km2 of sanitised airspace, was a key enabler for the trial.
Outcome
This was a complex exercise which was delivered at pace, and the achievement has been recognised by the Dstl. QinetiQ, in collaboration with industry partners and Dstl will continue to support the development, test and evaluation of this sovereign capability as the LDEW programme moves into its next phase.
As the planning for the adoption of LDEW capability by the UK MOD progresses, QinetiQ is maturing its coherently combined fibre laser design and the associated phase control system. QinetiQ's solution for high-power laser sources has a scalable architecture that supports performance levels suitable for maritime, land and air use.
Looking ahead, there will be an increased emphasis on the test and evaluation of LDEW systems; the MOD Hebrides trial demonstrated our ability to plan and manage safe high power LDEW trials.