The U.S. Army issued a contract to accelerate the rapid prototyping and fielding of its first combat-capable laser weapon system. This prototype will deliver 50 kilowatt (kW)-class lasers on a platoon of four Stryker vehicles in Fiscal Year 2022, supporting the Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense (M-SHORAD) mission. The directed energy M-SHORAD capability is intended to protect maneuvering Brigade Combat Teams from unmanned aerial systems (UAS), rotary-wing aircraft, and rockets, artillery and mortar (RAM)
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| A 5 kW laser integrated on a Stryker participated in the Maneuver Fires Integrated Experiment (MFIX) at Fort Sill, April 5, 2017. (Picture source: US Army) |
