U.S. Army to Formalize Deployment of High-Energy Laser System
The Pentagon is set to sign a contract that will make the Enduring High Energy Laser an official Army weapon, deploying it at bases worldwide.
Sources say the Department of Defense is preparing to approve a contract that will integrate the Enduring High Energy Laser (E-HEL) into the Army’s inventory, with plans to station the devices at installations around the globe. The agreement, valued in the hundreds of millions, would procure as many as 20 compact laser modules from AeroVironment, each small enough to fit in a four-by-seven-foot container or mount on an all-terrain vehicle.
Designating the system as a program of record places it formally in the Pentagon’s five-year budget, signaling a shift from experimental prototypes to an operational capability. The move follows a series of field tests, including a demonstration at White Sands after an Iranian drone attack that killed six service members and injured dozens. While earlier laser deployments have encountered issues, such as accidental firings near the U.S. border, officials view the new contract as a step toward a sustainable counter-drone solution.
Why it matters
It marks the first large-scale adoption of laser weapons by the U.S. Army, potentially changing how low-cost drones are countered.
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