UK wants to give Ukraine a prototype of DragonFire laser weapon that can hit any target at the speed of light

The Ukrainian army may receive laser weapons to fight Russian drones and missiles.

Here's What We Know

The information was shared by The Telegraph, referring to the words of British Defence Minister Grant Shapps. We are talking about a prototype of the DragonFire laser system. The UK plans to receive the first production versions of the weapon in 2027, but before that, engineers want to test the laser on the battlefield in Ukraine, even if it is not 100 per cent ready.

Flashback

Dragonfire is a British directed energy laser weapon technology. It was first presented in 2017 at the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) conference in London. The weapon utilises UK-developed beam combining technology to create a laser beam with increased power density, reduced kill time and increased effective range.

The laser is in the 50kW class and is designed to defend land and sea targets against missiles, drones and mortars. The range of DragonFire has not been disclosed, but the UK Ministry of Defence says the system hits any visible target at the speed of light. The system can hit a coin from a kilometre away. One shot of the laser costs £10 (less than $13).

Source: The Telegraph