Airborne Laser Testing Flies Ahead
U.S. engineers have started testing a military plane equipped with a powerful laser that has the ability to shoot down enemy ballistic missiles in the early stages of their flight.
To test its sequencing and control, engineers have started flowing chemical fuel through the laser.
The process begins the first test firing of the US Air Force’s Airborne Laser (ABL) while it is on the ground.
"The Airborne Laser team has done a great job preparing the high-energy laser for these fuel tests, which will lead the way toward achieving ‘first light’ of the laser aboard the aircraft," said Mike Rinn, vice president of Boeing, which is prime contractor on the project.
"Once again, we made and demonstrated enormous progress toward ushering in a new age of directed-energy weapons."
After the laser has passed several test firings on the ground, the entire system will be flown to carry out functional checkouts.
The first airborne intercept of an in-flight ballistic missile is planned for 2009.
With a laser- tracking beam, the ABL illuminates the missile while computers measure its distance and calculate its course and direction.
After the ABL locks onto the target, a second, high-power laser fires a three-to-five-second burst from a turret located in the 747′s nose. The beam heats up the pressurized fuel tank of the outbound missile and causes it to rupture, destroying the missile.
The high-energy weapon, built by defense giant Northrop Grumman, is a Chemical Oxygen Iodine Laser (COIL) capable of producing megawatts of power.
It’s designed to destroy "all classes" of ballistic missiles, including tactical ballistic missiles (TBMs) and intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs).
Like any new invention, there are pros and cons to the system.
For the military, destroying ballistic missiles while their rockets are firing during their boost phase carries several advantages.
The bright, hot rocket exhaust makes it easier to see and targeting of the missile. And it is much more difficult for the enemy to use countermeasures, such as decoys, during this phase of flight.
The wreckage will typically land in enemy territory, although the military should be worried about collateral damage in surrounding countries.
However, it may be difficult to position the intercept weapon – in this case the aircraft – to shoot down the missiles. There is also limited time in which to destroy the missile in this early stage of flight.
The ABL’s range is limited by the distance and is affected by atmospheric conditions like turbulence, humidity, clouds and the time of day.
The Airborne Laser could shoot down a typical liquid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) from up to 600km away, according to an American Physical Society report in 2004.
However, the accurate range would be about 300km against solid-fuel ICBMs, which are more resistant to heating.
The US report noted, the ABL would be too short to defend against solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missiles launched from Iran or North Korea.
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