The Pentagon plans to create laser weapons for armored vehicles.

The Pentagon - headquarters of the US Department of Defense. Photo: CC BY-SA 2.0

Posting on its public procurement website, the US government is asking for data on companies capable of manufacturing “compact and reliable” modules for this purpose.

The modules are essential for the US military when used to serve subsystems of high energy laser weapons HEL (High Energy Laser).

Therefore, the US Department of Defense will explore the prospects of increasing the effectiveness of laser use in combat operations. In particular, the Pentagon is interested in the ability to control laser beams and how to cool laser systems.

The request calls for the advanced laser system to be equipped with a 50 kW generator, mounted on a heavy-duty truck with “increased mobility” and a transport capacity of 14.5 tons. In the future, the US Army hopes to acquire more compact HEL complexes for use on the Stryker medium-sized armored tactical vehicle.

As stated, the Pentagon wants the HEL deployment to take no more than 5 minutes and the time between shots to be 0.02 seconds.