Later this year, the U.S. Navy is set to deploy a new 60-kilowatt (kw) shipboard laser weapon on a Burke-class destroyer that will take the U.S. Navy’s attack strategy and tactics for large-scale naval warfare on the high seas to a new level.
Later this year, after additional land and sea testing and evaluation, the new “High-Energy Laser with Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance” (HEL) will be deployed on the Burke class destroyers, the U.S. Navy reported. and Surveillance, abbreviated HELIOS, meaning Helios), will be equipped on the Burke-class Fight IIA DDG51 destroyer.
This means the Navy destroyer will have the operational capability to destroy enemy Drones with high precision at the speed of light, capable of jamming, burning, or simply disabling hostile drones. Laser weapons are not only silent, low-cost, scalable and highly accurate, but more importantly, they fire at the speed of light.
As these new technologies enter the realm of naval warfare, they will dramatically change U.S. Navy tactics, and such weapons with light-speed emissions are becoming increasingly important. As noted in the just-released 2021 Chief of Naval Operations Navigation Plan (CNO NAVPLAN), modern naval warfare tends to be more multi-batch, coordinated and is dominated by a new generation of artificial intelligence.
The U.S. Navy intends to build seven additional SHIELD-class DDG-51 destroyers, which will be equipped with the latest radar and missiles. Pictured is a U.S. guided-missile destroyer DDG-51 on a mission at sea March 13, 2003.(AFP)
The Secretary of Naval Operations, Admiral Michael Gilday, wrote in the CNO NAVPLAN: “Ubiquitous and continuous sensing data, advanced networked warfare models, and increasingly long-range and fast weapon systems are the key to the success of the U.S. Navy. and increasingly faster weapon systems are driving our approach to combat more toward multiple batches …… Staying ahead of our competitors will require us to rapidly invest in the most advanced weapon systems.”
How will shipborne laser weapons change naval warfare strategy and tactics?
Faced with a hostile flying target, a warship commander now has the option to jam the target and disable it offensively, rather than having to use a destroyer vertical launch system to launch an expensive interceptor missile to destroy the target. This reduces or avoids the after-effects of an aerial blast, such as those that may be produced by an SM-2 or SM-6 interceptor missile, and can reduce the risk of civilian casualties from bomb fragments in a heavily trafficked maritime environment.
A laser weapon like HELIOS also has a large number of optical sensors, which means it can use sensors to track targets and help perform necessary surveillance missions. In some cases, laser weapons can also bring surface warships closer to hostile targets, as laser weapons can be used as a supplement to the firepower of on-deck guns, as it attacks at the speed of light and targets narrow targets with precision.
“HELIOS is designed to be very compatible, and it forms a seamless docking with the ship itself and with the ship’s cooling and power systems.” Jon Rambeau, vice president and general manager of Lockheed Martin-owned Support Core Mission and Integrated Combat Systems Development, said in an interview with Warrior Maven.
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