America's laser of death cleared for take-off

The Sunday Telegraph (U.K.) ^ | 02/17/2002 | Sean Rayment

[Pokey78]

AMERICA'S enemies will soon face a weapon, once confined to the Star Wars films, that can bring death at the speed of light.

The special operations AC-130 Spectre gunship, whose conventional weaponry has been used to devastating effect since the Vietnam War, is to be fitted with a laser that can shoot down missiles, punch holes in aircraft and knock out ground radar stations.

Despite the successful operations against Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters in Afghanistan, the emergence of asymmetric terrorist warfare - attacks such as September 11 where the enemy is unseen - has led the Pentagon to identify the need for a more sophisticated and deadly weapons system.

The next generation gunship, codenamed AC-X and nicknamed 'Son of Spectre' by US defence officials, will carry all the weaponry already used on the AC-130, including twin 20mm Vulcan cannon (capable of firing 2,500 rounds per minute), 40mm Bofor cannon (100 rounds per minute) and a 105mm Howitzer. Its 21st-century addition, however, will be its biggest punch: a chemical oxygen iodine laser (Coil), capable of carrying out lethal and non-lethal attacks.

The advantage of laser weapons is that they strike at the speed of light. In the Coil, the power of a chemical reaction is converted to laser energy, and the weapon can carry on firing as long as its power source is intact.

Paul Wolfowitz, the US deputy defence secretary, has given the go-ahead for the next-generation AC-130, which includes full funding for the "integration of a direct-energy weapon".

The Pentagon is yet to announce when the new laser-equipped "Son of Spectre" will come into operation, but it is understood that the first upgraded version could be involved in military operations within two years.

Although lasers exist that can hit aircraft, disable optically guided missiles and destroy communications lines, the ability to vaporise enemy troops and vehicles Star Wars-style will take a few more years to develop.

The Spectre, flown by the 16th Special Operations Squadron, has a crew of 13, including two observers using television and infra-red images to direct the four gunners on to their target.

Working in pairs, normally providing close air support for special forces ground operations, Spectres can circle targets for hours, pulverising areas the size of football pitches with extraordinary precision.

The Spectre has, however, come to the end of its operational life and further upgrades have been ruled out on cost grounds.

Rob Hewson, the editor of Jane's Air Launched Weapons, said: "The laser will be the atomic weapon of the 21st century. Since the 1970s, US scientists have conducted a series of secret experiments in the Nevada desert using lasers.

"We know that they had lasers capable of causing immense damage but they needed huge power packs. This remains a problem and this is why a laser weapon can only be fitted on an air frame the size of the AC-130. But advances will be made and the power plant will shrink and one day it will dominate the battle field.

"The Americans may already have a very powerful laser weapon far more advanced than we have seen. They have been carrying out research in this field for years but it is a very secret weapons programme and we have no idea how far they have progressed."

Once the Coil and its power plant have been fully developed, the USAF hopes to fit it to a whole range of manned and unmanned aircraft, such as the Predator reconnaissance probe, which is fitted with Hellfire missiles and has been used in CIA operations in Afghanistan.

Lasers could also be used as an additional weapon system to fighters, bombers, helicopter gunships and warships but this is unlikely for a decade.

[RichInOC]

OSAMA: "...Inshallah, we shall prevail! And may Allah the Most Just strike me dead by a lightning bolt if I am lying...."

ZOT!!!

[quesera]

Find out about whether there are really captured aliens.

That would be first on my list too. Second thing would be a tour of area 51, or it's new location.

[stryker]

The age of personal freedom is dead. Any weapon that can be turned upon an enemy can also be turned upon a dissenting citizen. Only the rise of an incredibly powerful constitutional party ready to punish public servants that even attempt to violate the letter or spirit of the Bill of Rights will save us and the world from a coming dark age.

[Doomonyou]

Nice Handle...

[FixitGuy]

The main problem with neat new weapons:

Sooner or later some traitor a$$-O will sell the technology to your enemy and you end up looking down the barrel of your own weapon.

Wish there was an end to that...

NO I'm not advocating disarmament!!!

[EternalVigilance]

And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon. And he exerciseth all the power of the first beast before him, and causeth the earth and them which dwell therein to worship the first beast, whose deadly wound was healed. And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men...-Revelation 13:11-13

Amazing how John knew about this stuff almost 2000 years ago... ;-)

[EternalVigilance]

Sorry. You posted yours while I was typing mine....I guess great minds DO think alike! :-)

[Grut]

"The return of Puff."

For the "don't ask, don't tell" military, how about "Poof?"

[section9]

The United States government first started experimenting with lasers in the early nineteen sixties. The Russians were working along the same lines, but never had the kind of resources that we had to do the same things.

The problem, as the article highlighted, was power supply miniaturization. Now a recent article that we saw posted to FR spoke of an Air Force R&D project to build an airborne atomic reactor. Now why would anyone want to build an airborne reactor just so it could fit it into a widebody?

Do the math, folks. Imagine a COIL or one of more elaborate devices with the punch of a small nuclear reactor to provide power.

THEL has been around for some time.

....so long that the services spend advertising dollars hawking their supposed skills at THEL to the Pentagon and the Congress.

I strongly suspect that there are far more elaborate black projects underway, possibly involving plasma weaponry. And yes, the Stealth that crashed in Serbia back in 1999 was an older model: the new stuff is so far out we have no idea as to its capabilities (personally, I think that we've been testing manned hypersonic vehicles for some time now). One of the most talked about vehicles is something called "AURORA", which is supposedly an urban legend that got its start when the name appeared as an Air Force line item back in the eighties. However....

....while our friend AURORA may be named something else altogether, there is a general consensus that the SR-71 isn't in the spy plane business anymore for a dadgum good reason. It's been replaced, and probably by something like the aircraft pictured above, which is said to move at suborbital heights and at hypersonic speeds.

In short, there is a LOT of wierd stuff out at Groom Lake. No one is allowed near there for a set of very good reasons. And of course, they also keep other things at Area 51....

Watch the Skies!

Be Seeing You,

Chris

[tet68]

Honest,I just saw this on the cover of popular Mechanics,

America's lazer fighting blimps bring death to terrorists from high altitude.

Honest,at the Kroger!

[Scott from the Left Coast]

Hey Saddam! Our planes are just taking pictures. Just smile for the camera and don't worry about that flash.

[Lancey Howard]

I just love this stuff.

And if this is what they're telling us about, imagine what we have that they aren't telling us about!

BUMP!!!

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

Thanks for the ping!

Next thing you know we will have airborne tankers
refueling the laser ships with their weaponry juice!

Sounds cool to me!

[Lancey Howard]

When I was at Penn State, I saw a guest lecturer by the name of Rennie Davis (remember him - - Chicago seven or something?). This was around 1973. He talked about US use of lasers in Vietnam and I just took him for goofy. But over the years, I have seen enough references to wonder if maybe we were indeed playing around with lasers back then.

[CJinVA]

Link to Airborne Laser

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

OK!

Found this:

	What's a Tactical High-Energy Laser? By Frank Sietzen Special to SPACE.com posted: 12:02 pm ET 26 September 2000		Clinton Punts Defense Decision Circuitry Problem Blamed for Missile Defense Test Failure Force Fields and 'Plasma' Shields Get Closer to Reality Pentagon Missile Defense Test Fails
The laser beam system used to shoot down the two missiles during Friday's test is called a Tactical High Energy Laser (THEL). THEL is a short-range, ground-based air-defense system under test and development by TRW Inc. for the U.S. Army and the Israel Ministry of Defense. The device uses a high-energy, chemically-generated laser beam to shoot down rocket attacks. Israel has an urgent need to protect civilians and others living along its northern borders. The THEL laser system is housed in several semitrailer-sized containers. THEL is made up of three systems: a control system, which tracks the incoming missiles while in flight and is used to aim the laser system; a pointer-tracker system that contains the firing system and the laser itself -- a deuterium fluoride chemical laser. Other facts: Program development cost: $201 million Modified in January 1998 to include field testing ($97.5 million added to base contract) Contract is for a test version of the laser beam system only

[Ernest_at_the_Beach]

The THEL laser system is housed in several semitrailer-sized containers.

It's gonna be a full airplane!

[IronJack]

I saw a documentary on this laser system, but I thought it was carried aboard a modified passenger jet (727?). It's not perfect, since heavy cloud cover can deflect it, but it is a functional system, not just "Lost in Space" theory.

[IronJack]

That's the one I saw. It was a 747. Awfully bulky system, but still pretty nifty. Unless you're a towelhead on a slow camel ...