Free Republic

JERUSALEM — After two decades of research and experimentation, Israeli defense officials now say they have a working prototype of a high-powered laser gun that can intercept rockets, mortar shells, drones and anti-tank missiles in flight. Officials said that the system performed successfully in a recent series of live fire tests in the southern Israeli desert, destroying a rocket, a mortar shell and a drone, and prompting a standing ovation from officials watching the action onscreen. The government has allocated hundreds of millions of dollars to develop the weapon, which Prime Minister Naftali Bennett described this week as a “strategic...

Apparently, the first-ever use of an Iron Beam combat laser was used in repelling a missile attack on Tel Aviv this evening. pic.twitter.com/1grGAlXzKG — Sprinter (@Sprinter99800) October 15, 2023 Here is the first video of the Israeli Iron Beam, laser air defense system, intercepting enemy rockets, from today. Via Midnight Rider and Amir Tsarfati:

Video of the Update of the Israel Defense Forces.

Israel is offering for sale a laser weapon that can shoot down artillery and mortar shells as well as rockets and small UAVs. Called Iron Beam it has a range of 2,000 meters and is expected to enter service in Israel by the end of 2015. There is a lot of action on Israeli borders for a system like Iron Beam and it will soon become evident if Iron Beam is the first effective laser air defense weapon or not. Each Iron Beam firing unit consists of a radar and control system and two lasers. These three elements can be...

The U.S. Navy announced Wednesday that a new laser weapon deployed into Persian Gulf earlier this year performed seamlessly during testing that wrapped up in November, and declared the weapon a success. Deployed for the first time aboard the U.S.S. Ponce in September, the Office of Naval Research released a video Wednesday of the LaWS (laser weapon system) taking out two test targets

An Israeli state-owned arms company developing a laser-based missile shield that evokes “Star Wars” style technology says its deployment over the country is closer to becoming a reality. Rafael Advanced Defense Systems said development of the system was advanced enough for the company to be comfortable with publicizing it at this week’s Singapore Airshow, which is Asia’s largest aerospace and defense exhibition. The laser technology behind the missile shield called Iron Beam is not that far removed from fiction. “It’s exactly like what you see in Star Wars,” said company spokesman Amit Zimmer. “You see the lasers go up so...