German Military Completes Sea Trials Of Laser Weapon Demo Prototype

According to foreign media this week, the German "Sachsen" (Sachsen) frigate has successfully completed the laser weapon demonstration prototype of the sea test work, the frigate on more than 100 times of laser weapon demonstrator integration and launch test.
The successful test dates back to 2021, when the German Military Procurement Office initially awarded a contract to the High Energy Laser Naval Demonstration Working Group (ARGE) to build a high-energy laser weapon demonstrator for the maritime domain. By June 2022, the German military had integrated the Laser Weapon Demonstrator (LWD) into the German Navy frigate Saxony. MBDA reports that the LWD has demonstrated that lasers can successfully attack targets in a maritime environment.
The tests were planned and organized by the Bundeswehr's Office for Equipment, Information Technology and In-Service Support (BAAINBw), developed and constructed and supported by the Naval Demonstration Working Group for Energetic Lasers (ARGE), and developed by MBDA and Rheinmetall.
The operational effectiveness of the Laser Weapon Demonstrator (LWD) was validated against different types of targets under increasingly complex real-world operational conditions in tests involving six campaigns spanning nearly a year. These tests included all aspects of detection and tracking, including highly agile targets, sensor interactions, and command and weapon engagement systems and effectors. The partners also considered possible rules of engagement and, most importantly, successfully engaged targets with high-energy laser beams.
At the end of the test, the capabilities of this laser weapon demonstrator were successfully demonstrated over two days of dedicated demonstrations in front of senior representatives of the BAAINBw, the German Navy and Army, and the Bundeswehr's Office of Defense Planning (PlgABw), including the shooting down of a drone. Representatives from the British, Dutch and Norwegian navies also participated in the demonstration.
The demonstrator is currently undergoing detailed inspection, after which it will be transferred to the Bundeswehr Technical Center in Meppen, northwest Germany. The relevant test results and subsequent analyses will help to reduce the risks in the next phase of the development of operational laser weapon systems. The prerequisites for the development of the first laser weapon have been largely defined, and both MBDA and Rheinland have initiated internal preparations for the development phase.
As a complement to artillery systems and guided missiles, the laser weapon system offers advantages against threats such as drones, drone swarms, speedboats, and missiles at close and very close range. In the future, it may also be upgraded to destroy supersonic missiles, rockets and mortars. Currently, one of the key challenges for Laser Directed Energy Weapon (LDEW) systems is to accurately and safely control high-power lasers and focus them to a more precise point.
The Missile Group Europe (MBDA) is a European multinational conglomerate that is a world leader in complex weapon systems and plays a key role in maintaining national security.MBDA, formed by the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Italy, develops advanced missile weapons that are used in more than 90 countries around the globe, and has become the world's second-largest manufacturer of missiles (after the U.S. Raytheon Company). It is the world's second largest missile manufacturer (after Raytheon). In addition, it is the only manufacturer in the world capable of simultaneously developing missile systems for the current and future air, sea and land forces. In terms of laser weapons, the AS-30L laser-guided missile, one of the European Missile Group's star exports, is a supersonic laser-guided air-to-surface missile with a maximum range of 10 kilometers.
Rheinmetall is a publicly traded company headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany. It is a leading representative of the international defense industry and a driver of forward-looking technological and industrial innovations in the civil sector. The Group employs 28,000 people in 131 locations around the world and has sales in 2022 of around EUR 6.4 billion.