The DragonFire system during a test. (The UK Ministry of Defence)
The DragonFire laser directed-energy weapon (LDEW) weapon being developed for the British military could have “huge ramifications” for the conflict in Europe, United Kingdom Defence Secretary Grant Shapps said on April 11.
The LDEW could be rushed to the front line in Ukraine to take down Russian drones, according to Shapps, who noted that the laser was originally set to be rolled out in 2032, but new reforms aimed at speeding up procurement mean it will be operational five years earlier.
During a visit to the Porton Down military research hub in Salisbury, Shapps told reporters that he would look to see if the pace could be increased even further “in order for Ukrainians perhaps to get their hands on it”.
“I’ve come down to speed up the production of the DragonFire laser system because I think, given that there’s two big conflicts on, one sea-based, one in Europe, this could have huge ramifications to have a weapon capable particularly of taking down drones,” the Defense Secretary said.
“And so what I want to do is speed up what would usually be a very lengthy development procurement process, possibly up to 10 years, based on my conversations this morning, to a much shorter time frame to get it deployed, potentially on ships, incoming drones, and potentially on land. Again, incoming drones, but it doesn’t take much imagination to see how that could be helpful in Ukraine for example.” he added.
The laser is being developed by UK DragonFire, a collaboration consisting of MBDA UK, Leonardo UK, QinetiQ and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl).
DragonFire uses UK-pioneered beam-combining technology to deliver a laser beam with increased power density, reduced defeat times and increased effective range.
The LDEW and its associated targeting systems, including an electro-optical camera and second lower-power laser for imaging and tracking, are mounted to a turret. The laser is reportedly in the 50 kW class and is designed to defend land and maritime targets from threats such as missiles and mortars.
The British plan to deliver the DragonFire to Ukraine, which is struggling to operate and maintain less complex missile air defense systems, is very ambitious to say the least.
Shapps’s promise may be more of a propaganda meant to boost the morale of the Kiev regime, which recently sustained heavy losses as a result of Russian missile and drone strikes. The regime made several pleas to its allies to boost its depleted air defenses in the last few weeks to no avail.
Even if delivered, DragonFire will not likely make any difference as the Russian military will be able to attack it as it did with all other Western “Wunderwaffes” supplied to Ukraine after the start of the Russian special military operation.
It’s worth noting that the Russian already has a similar LDEW in service, the Peresvet. The laser system is said to be capable of air defense and anti-satellite warfare with a range of 1,500 kilometers. A more powerful version, dubbed Zadira, was reportedly tested against Kiev forces.
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MORE ON THIS TOPIC:
delusional fantasy — first of all, ‘lasers’ do not work at any distance in the atmosphere. second, ‘lasers’ require an enormous amount of electrical energy — which ukrapistan no longer has — anywhere.
well most likely but technical note – 50kw = 67hp = multi cylinder diesel engined generator that is quite big but you can still easily put on a truck, commonly seen at outdoor events.
a country colonialized by it’s own globalist junta on it’s death throes using futuristic cartoons must be the last gasp of a failed state.
die bild zeitung ist für ihre seriösität in ganz deutschland bekannt 😂😂😂😂😂
über die bild schimpfen aber dafür russische desinformation mit begeisterung lesen. kannst sicher nur ein ungebildeter afdler sein lol
reading you german nazis that support ukrainian nazis and complaining about “russian propaganda” is peak comedy! you idiots fell for our nato propaganda hook, line, and sinker.
guillable idiots!
deu=🤡 😆😆😆
how is your sister doing? i heard she is pregnant. is she from mohammed pregnant or from achmed?
über die afd schimpfen aber selber grüner päderast sein
t14 armata: crap kinzhal: crap su 57: crap poseidon: crap poor ruskies 🇷🇺=🤡 😆😆😆
and why u losing then?retard libtard
because im stupid, duuuh!
us=🤡 😆😆😆
did your d.i’s violate you or something?
remind me, what happened to the ukraine gene pool? how long will it take before ukraine is back to the size it was pre-1917?
is this what sawyer transgender senile husbands says? or did your taliban therapist refuse your request for more fentanyl?🤣
lol the west is so weak at the moment, they think a shovel is a game changing weapon. 😂😂😂
trouble is we have regressed so much, over the last half century, that for us in the west, it is a game changing weapon. the only thing we have that works.
uk needs to call it quits before russia decides that it is better to cut of the head of the snake than to deal with its tail.
uk fantasy. all they would end up doing is gifting it to rf. ain’t never gonna happen anyway, this is just dreaming out loud.
1. five years earlier? so if it was meant to be in 2032, that places it in 2027. good luck until then.
2. is there rain, fog or dust in the air? have fun burning that instead of the target.
3. dear toy worth $billions, meet mr. lancet, mr. fab and if that isn’t enough, mr. kinzhal. your monument to techbro arrogance will be vapourized before it even warms mr. kinzhal up to room temperature.
i wonder what toys russia will have in her toybox, come 2027? russian eagle, would be apt, when seeking those dragons. that is if the uk gets them on the market by 2027 and in full working order. in the meantime, must look out for those flying pigs.
the british nazis will shine a flashlight and call it a lazoor!
uk=🤡 😆😆😆
well, if lucas had anything to do with designing it, it might be able to start a fire in dry grass at 10 meters if it doesn’t short circuit first.
gr*nt sh*pps will have lost his seat at the 2024 general election long before this piece of sci fi nonsense has a red light and a working wall plug attached to it.
da, pipi de pisica fara pisica. pute a prosti. prima dată dovada apoi speach
bucureștiul te saluta, si saluta ursoaica 🐻
grant shapps/corinne stockheath/michael green will go back to working as an mlm internet conman after he get stripped of his seat in the next few months
what’s next? giving the ukrops a nuclear bomb? it’s time for britain to end their involvement in the war that ukropistan already lost. worry about your own little island in the north sea.
de unde stii ca nu au primit o deja?
e totul relativ… hai sa dam.. una sub centura.
the us and the uk “leaders” making a killing by selling weapons to anyone really, be it wahhabis in ksa or uae or ukraine.
same shit with “israel”… guess who pays these people in the us government? zionists. the only people that are getting fuked are normal people…
so true. even the us senators like rubio are demanding the total destruction and or enslavement of the goyim. they aren’t even hiding it anymore. everything is coming to light.
but our island is so dull and dreary. we were hoping to make ukraine a colony and breath new life into our empirical dreams.
wow!!! ready by 2027 – only 3 years after the war has ended. rotflmao
i heard a rumour, that finland has developed terminator type fighting robots, and is going to supply 10000 of them to ukraine.
they’ll have to strip the chips from their defunct nokia phones to do it though.
lol those bored little brits, they have been on a losing streak since 1956. what they need is a new hobby, better dental health and less cocaine
why do all our teeth rot prematurely in the uk? does it have to do with our overbite?
what a clownshow nato has become! hahahahahaha 🤡 😆😆😆
i’m going to replace stoltenberg and stretch a wire from the eu hq to nato hq and ride my bicycle on it.
another supa dupa wonder weapon lol
nato 32 talibanned sheep that live in futility want to be russian wolf…”the wolf cares not how many amerikan sheep there may be”. virgil🤡
turn on the radar once and it’s toast !
turn on the laser once and it’s toast !
then , a wild cluster bomb appears …
easiest way to defend against this stupid thing?
wrap the drone in tinfoil or mount mirrors to the body.
problem solved.
more “game changers” and “wunderwaffe” that won’t change reality.
i suppose as a consequence, russian will anihilate elec grid
british peepsquicks.
my anuz electrified with mulatto peniz laser