Posted on 09/18/2025 7:12:20 AM PDT by House Atreides
Israel announced Wednesday the operational deployment of the Iron Beam, the world’s first high-energy laser defense system ready for combat, a breakthrough officials hailed as a strategic game-changer in modern warfare.
Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, in partnership with Israel’s Ministry of Defense, confirmed completion of final development trials for the Iron Beam 450, demonstrating the ability to intercept rockets, mortars, and drones “with unmatched speed, precision, and near-zero cost per engagement.”
Defense sources emphasized that the system’s speed-of-light engagement means Israelis may no longer need to run to shelters in most attacks, as projectiles can be destroyed almost immediately after launch, often while still over enemy territory.
The Iron Beam family includes the vehicle-mounted Lite Beam (ten-kilowatt), the mobile Iron Beam M (50-kilowatt), and the flagship Iron Beam 450 for maximum-range interceptions. Field testing over the past year already saw smaller variants deflect “scores” of Hezbollah drones and rockets.
By integrating Iron Beam alongside Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and Arrow, Israel has created what officials describe as an unprecedented protective umbrella — one that combines layered interception with economic sustainability. While nations including the U.S., Russia, China, and Britain race to field their own directed-energy weapons, Israel has become the first to move from testing to operational combat deployment.
(Excerpt) Read more at breitbart.com ...
We need these to protect aircraft carriers.
Now please.
Drones you say....
Perhaps armor and capital ships will still have their day.
Can’t wait to see a video of that light show...
Could be a game changer in the Ukrainian war.
The Ukrainian war has stalemated primarily because of the ubiquitous use of drones. A cheap and effective defense against drones could change everything.
I think the USA is closest to Israel in having an operational version of a tactical/strategic laser which can shoot down drones.
"While nations including the U.S., Russia, China, and Britain race to field their own directed-energy weapons, Israel has become the first to move from testing to operational combat deployment."
Certainly, if powering these devices and a decent range fit well with computer-assisted firing solutions, then this would be quite a breakthrough. One wonders how such would fare against a salvo of numerous "incoming." But if the devices are reasonable in price, they could be a numerous as any salvo. Wait and see.
We would never share the tech with anyone except the USA.
Certainly not Ukraine.
“Near-Zero Cost”
If you don’t count the cost to develop, build, stage, man, and power.
A lot of U.S. funding has been used to develop the Iron Beam.
Expect the technology to be available to the USA.
This was a relatively cheap system to produce. I have seen figures of about $500 million in recent development costs and $200 million for serial production of lasers.
I do not see costs shown of how much the production of the whole system costs. My guess it is far, far lower than interceptors such as the Patriot missile system.
Probably not expensive enough for the Pentagon to buy; besides, the system is not made in America.
Little trivia, but I’ve heard these light off a fair amount.
I expected them to be silent.
But they go “off” with a rolling bang like a rocket speeding off. Not as loud as Iron Dome or what not. Quieter but longer. And not from one spot.
It’s apparently the air around the beam going supersonic and creating a rolling sonic boom. Very strange sound as the sonic boom is not in one spot, but all along the path of the beam.
The machinery itself makes a very loud hummmmm and “pop” as (what I presume to be) a capacitor bank discharges. Plus there is all kinds of cooling stuff doing its thing.
Trivia, but not a “zap” or “pew” or silent (like I expected).
(No, this is not secret information. There are videos floating around.)
If such a weapon is as advertised and were to be deployed on behalf of Ukraine, effecting the ultimate expulsion of Russia from Ukraine, there are many in this forum, and in this administration, who would be disappointed.
Sunk costs.
Per “round”, it’s cheaper than an artillery shell.
Ukraine cannot produce the Patriot missile interceptor system.
These systems will be very difficult to reverse engineer.
A lot of the development is in the actual lasers and the software and control systems.
We don’t know how rapidly it can shoot down targets, how much power it takes to run the system (some multiple of the power of the lasers).
There is a hint of how much each system may cost if mass produced (under 10 million, based on development costs, as a guess)
We don’t know the life of the system, in terms of “shots” fired.
Answers to those questions are probably classified.
The complete quote ... why you chose to leave off the phrase "per engagement" is, of course, known only to you. The cost of a missile intercept begins in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. The cost of a bullet intercept is in the thousands of dollars. The cost of a LASER intercept is in double-digit dollars. How many gallons of diesel are required to power one LASER shot?
Per “round”, it’s cheaper than an artillery shell.
We don’t know how much the per-shot cost is by amortizing the capital investment. It may be very high, or pretty low.
Probably not enough experience to know with precision.
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