Douglas Barrie/London

The UK Ministry of Defence (MoD) is exploring fielding advanced laser weaponry on Royal Navy ships and Royal Air Force fast jets for missile defence.

The MoD is close to awarding one or more study contracts examine replacing the navy's Phalanx gun air-defence system with a turreted laser system for close-in defence against missile and possibly aircraft threats. The laser would be used to defeat imaging-infra-red or electro-optically guided anti-ship missiles.

Some companies, thought to include British Aerospace, Hughes, Shorts and GEC-Marconi, are believed to have expressed an interest in participating in the naval laser prefeasibility study. The MoD has a tentative in-service date on this system of between 2005 and 2010. Hughes is already looking at developing a laser-defence system for the US Navy, replacing the gun on the Phalanx system with a laser. The RN fielded a first-generation laser-dazzle system in the early 1980s. It is understood to have been used during the Falklands War in 1982.

An active-laser-defence system is also beginning to be looked at as a way of protecting fast jets against infra-red (IR)-guided short-range missiles. Trials of several types of missile-approach warner will begin on a fast-jet trials aircraft in January 1997 and it is expected that this project will eventually be expanded into examining active-laser counter-measures.

Northrop Grumman is already under contract to the MoD to develop a turreted-directed infra-red countermeasures (DIRCM) system for ten different fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft in the MoD's inventory. Initially, the DIRCM will use an IR-lamp jammer, rather than a laser, although it expects an invitation to tender to be issued in January 1997 to evaluate various options, including a laser within the system.

The company says that it has already held exploratory talks with Eurofighter about a laser system. The laser package could be internally, pylon or pod mounted.

While a lamp jammer is capable of defeating first- and second-generation IR-guided missiles, a laser is required to defeat imaging-infra-red seekers. Although no shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles have so far been fielded with IR seekers, development projects are under way in this area.

Source: Flight International