The United States has ordered a unique weapon from Raytheon that will “set fire” to the enemy’s electronic components
The U.S. Air Force and Navy have asked the defense company Raytheon to design, build and test systems that will “ignite” enemy electronic components using energy explosions.
This was reported by Defence News.
In turn, the company responded to the Pentagon’s request, noting that it plans to deliver prototypes for the Advanced Electromagnetic Neutralization and Directed Energy Strike program in fiscal years 2024 and 2026.
The prototypes of these weapons will be rugged and transportable for use on the front lines against “airborne threats,” Raytheon said.
Colin Whelan, the company’s president of advanced technologies, said that non-kinetic defense systems are “a key part of the U.S. national defense strategy.”
“The new versions of Raytheon’s high-powered microwave systems are cost-effective and reliable solutions that operate at the speed of light, enabling our warfighters to defend against faster and more agile threats,” he explained.
The company has previously worked on a long-range counter-electronic microwave air base defense system, known as CHIMERA, for the US Air Force.
At the same time, Raytheon’s British subsidiary announced earlier this year that it would install another type of directed-energy weapon, a high-energy laser, on the Wolfhound armored vehicle.
Directed Energy Weapons (DEWs) damage their targets with highly focused energy without a solid projectile. These are laser beams, microwaves, particle beams, and sound beams. This technology can be used, in particular, against manpower, missiles, vehicles, and drones. This type of weapon exists, but is being tested. Its advantage is that laser beams propagate at the speed of light, so there is no need to take into account the target’s movement when shooting at a long distance. So, it is impossible to move away from the laser after the “shot”.
- The Pentagon spends an average of one billion dollars annually on the development of directed energy weapons to be deployed on board aircraft, warships, and ground vehicles to combat drones and missiles.
