During tests at the US Army’s White Sands test site in New Mexico, a laser system designed to protect ground forces from drones and aircraft successfully struck artillery mines in flight. This was reported by Popular Mechanics magazine citing a press release from Raytheon.

Related tests were carried out during the Directed Energy Maneuver-Short-Range Air Defense (DE M-SHORAD) program, which is developing guided weapons – it should be part of a promising short-range air defense system (AMD).

It was noted that Raytheon’s 50 kilowatt combat laser module mounted on a Stryker combat vehicle successfully detected, tracked and destroyed 60 millimeter artillery mines. The first four of these will be delivered to the US Army this year.