{"id":26758,"date":"2019-05-06T16:34:13","date_gmt":"2019-05-06T16:34:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/uncategorized\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/"},"modified":"2026-08-08T19:49:18","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T19:49:18","slug":"pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/","title":{"rendered":"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">SEATTLE \u2014 The Navy has never been closer to fielding lasers and other directed-energy weapons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Technological challenges remain, but the sea service is slated to test a 150-kilowatt spectrally beam-combined fiber laser on the amphibious platform dock ship <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navy.mil\/navydata\/fact_display.asp?cid=4200&#038;tid=600&#038;ct=4\" target=_blank>Portland <\/a>this year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And by 2021, the Navy\u2019s director of surface warfare, Rear Adm. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.navy.mil\/navydata\/bios\/bio.asp?bioID=690\" target=_blank>Ron Boxall<\/a>, intends to mount a nastier warship killer on a guided-missile destroyer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis is something we have to have on our ships,\u201d he told the audience at the 2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.boozallen.com\/d\/event\/directed-energy-summit.html\" target=_blank>Directed Energy Summit<\/a> in Washington, D.C., on March 20.<\/p>\n\n\n<aside class=\"smg-interstitial-link smg-interstitial-link--fallback wp-block-smg-interstitial-link\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.defensenews.com\/digital-show-dailies\/navy-league\/\" class=\"smg-interstitial-link__fallback-link\">Click here for more stories, videos and interviews from Sea-Air-Space!<\/a><\/aside>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A product of the Office of Naval Research\u2019s Solid-State Laser Technology Maturation System program, it builds on lessons learned in 2014 when the Afloat Forward Staging Base &#8211; Interim Ponce tested a 30-kilowatt SEQ-3 system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Navy\u2019s also moving to install ODIN \u2014 Optical Dazzling Interdictor, Navy \u2014 on two Arleigh Burke-class destroyers this year, with up to six more units on the way, according to unclassified budget documents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Low-energy laser ODIN is designed to dazzle drones, not set enemy fleets on fire.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">What Boxall wants for other DDGs is a combination of the Portland\u2019s high-energy beam with an ODIN-like dazzler.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Call it the Surface Navy Laser Weapon System or HELIOS \u2014 High-Energy Laser Integrated Optical-Dazzler with Surveillance \u2014 it\u2019s being wired to work within the Aegis Combat System.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Navy leaders hope that it succeeds as both a target tracker for missiles and a directed-energy weapon that can fry an enemy frigate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That sort of system would be a \u201cgame changer\u201d if it\u2019s developed and deployed, according to an October Congressional Research Service report.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cRarely has the Navy had so many potential new types of surface-ship air-defense weapons simultaneously available for development and potential deployment,\u201d the report states.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"4256\" height=\"2832\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-laser.JPG.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-43623\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-laser.JPG.jpg 4256w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-laser.JPG.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-laser.JPG.jpg?resize=768,511 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-laser.JPG.jpg?resize=1024,681 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-laser.JPG.jpg?resize=1536,1022 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/navy-laser.JPG.jpg?resize=2048,1363 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 4256px) 100vw, 4256px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Afloat Forward Staging Base (Interim) Ponce conducts an operational demonstration of the Laser Weapon System (LaWS) while deployed to the Arabian Gulf in 2014. (U.S. Navy)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But don\u2019t count on futuristic \u201cpew-pew\u201d lasers roasting incoming swarms of Chinese missiles as a given, CRS warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAlthough the Navy in recent years has made considerable progress in developing technologies for these new weapons, a number of significant development challenges remain,\u201d the report stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cOvercoming these challenges will require development work, and ultimate success in overcoming them is not guaranteed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usni.org\/people\/eric-wertheim\" target=_blank>Eric Wertheim<\/a>, a defense consultant and author of \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usni.org\/press\/books\/naval-institute-guide-combat-fleets-world-16th-edition\" target=_blank>Combat Fleets of the World<\/a>,\u201d the challenges are worth overcoming because the promise of these new capabilities mitigate threats that threaten America\u2019s fleet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Like the CRS report and Navy leaders, Wertheim remains bullish about how revolutionary such systems could become, likening lasers to \u201cthe advent of the missile age, moving from guns to missiles\u201d in the 1950s and 1960s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It could even be \u201cat least as big as nuclear submarines,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cDirected energy has the ability to completely alter the way that navies fight,\u201d Wertheim said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The main benefit of using laser systems to defend U.S. warships would come in the Western Pacific, where an increasingly assertive and capable China can churn out large quantities of cheap missiles designed to overwhelm America\u2019s pinpoint defenses.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fear is that an American destroyer risks emptying a magazine of anti-ballistic missiles to counter incoming waves of Chinese weapons. That will leave the warship to rely on its gun or remove itself from the fight to reload its vertical launching system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lasers promise a far less expensive way to combat those incoming missiles, reserving the missiles for other targets, Wertheim said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou can save your missiles for longer-range issues, where you have to have the (defensive) missile or an offensive capability,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"5378\" height=\"3585\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/lasers.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-76629\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/lasers.jpg.jpg 5378w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/lasers.jpg.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/lasers.jpg.jpg?resize=768,512 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/lasers.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,683 1024w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/lasers.jpg.jpg?resize=1536,1024 1536w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/lasers.jpg.jpg?resize=2048,1365 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 5378px) 100vw, 5378px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Members of the Naval Postgraduate School&#8217;s Directed Energy Research Group measure turbulence in field conditions aboard the guided-missile destroyer  Spruance off the coast of San Diego last summer.  They collected data to help estimate the performance of high-energy lasers at sea. (Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Ryan D. McLearnon\/Navy)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Theoretically, lasers could engage multiple targets at once, limited only by the number of beams on board a warship, the amount of electricity needed to power them, inclement weather and their range, which remains below that of an SM-6 missile.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But they\u2019re important defensive weapons because \u201cyou can save your missile tubes for the things you really need to use them for,\u201d said Wertheim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The problem of generating enough juice for laser systems might be solved by the stealthy Zumwalt-class destroyers, which can produce 58 megawatts of power, enough to light a city.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But only three destroyers in the class will be built.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wertheim said that other vessels could tow laser-armed barges that also contain independent energy sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf you put these assets at land bases, you free up the ballistic missile requirements that are needed for ships, and allow the ships to be mobile again,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1200\" height=\"635\" src=\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2455273.jpg.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-66052\" srcset=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2455273.jpg.jpg 1200w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2455273.jpg.jpg?resize=300,159 300w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2455273.jpg.jpg?resize=768,406 768w, https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/2455273.jpg.jpg?resize=1024,542 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1200px) 100vw, 1200px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">The Sodium Guidestar at the Air Force Research Laboratory&#8217;s Starfire Optical Range resides on a 6,240 foot hilltop at Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M. The Army and Navy is developing its own laser weapons systems. (U.S. Air Force)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Wertheim estimates it\u2019ll be at least a decade before these types of systems come into widespread use, which is why the Navy needs to keep pursuing several technologies at once.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If one road is a dead end, another might lead to the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou\u2019re going to have to deal with the fact that \u2026 much like the Manhattan Project, we\u2019re talking about real revolutions in technology,\u201d he said. \u201cYou\u2019re going to have false paths you hope for that might not pan out, while others that don\u2019t seem to be bearing fruit might be a better path to go.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a way, the Navy has no choice but to develop and field this technology as fast as possible because potential enemies overseas will do the same thing, he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThis is not a problem that\u2019s going away,\u201d Wertheim said. \u201cThe expense of developing our naval assets is not a challenge that will be going away.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Navy has never been closer to fielding directed-energy weapons.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":76628,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-noindex":"","_yoast_wpseo_meta-robots-nofollow":"","_yoast_wpseo_canonical":"","_acf":"","_yoast_wpseo_primary_category":16,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","_smg_distribution_targets":[]},"categories":[106,29,16,32],"tags":[],"coauthors":[3392],"class_list":["post-26758","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-daily-brief","category-home","category-it-networks","category-newsletters"],"acf":{"subheadline":"","legacy_arc_id":"36F3WAFDUBAWTOCK3BBNAILGHQ","arc_canonical_url":"\/news\/your-navy\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/","remove_feature_photo":false,"is_sponsored":false,"subtype":"","redirect_url":"","disable_inline_ads":false,"native_logo_pretext":"Presented By:"},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v26.0 (Yoast SEO v28.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction - C4ISRNet<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The Navy has never been closer to fielding directed-energy weapons.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The Navy has never been closer to fielding directed-energy weapons.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"C4ISRNet\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-05-06T16:34:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-08T19:49:18+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Geoff Ziezulewicz\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Geoff Ziezulewicz\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\n\t    \"@context\": \"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\n\t    \"@graph\": [\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Article\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/#article\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"author\": {\n\t                \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"headline\": \"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2019-05-06T16:34:13+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T19:49:18+00:00\",\n\t            \"mainEntityOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"wordCount\": 1005,\n\t            \"commentCount\": 0,\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Correa2.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"articleSection\": [\n\t                \"Daily Brief\",\n\t                \"Home\",\n\t                \"IT and Networks\",\n\t                \"Newsletters\"\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"CommentAction\",\n\t                    \"name\": \"Comment\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/#respond\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebPage\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction - C4ISRNet\",\n\t            \"isPartOf\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#website\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"primaryImageOfPage\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/#primaryimage\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"thumbnailUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Correa2.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"datePublished\": \"2019-05-06T16:34:13+00:00\",\n\t            \"dateModified\": \"2026-08-08T19:49:18+00:00\",\n\t            \"description\": \"The Navy has never been closer to fielding directed-energy weapons.\",\n\t            \"breadcrumb\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/#breadcrumb\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ReadAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": [\n\t                        \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/\"\n\t                    ]\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/#primaryimage\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Correa2.jpg.jpg\",\n\t            \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Correa2.jpg.jpg\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"BreadcrumbList\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/2019\\\/05\\\/06\\\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\\\/#breadcrumb\",\n\t            \"itemListElement\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 1,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Home\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"home\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 2,\n\t                    \"name\": \"IT and Networks\",\n\t                    \"item\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/it-networks\\\/\",\n\t                    \"ad_zone\": \"it-networks\"\n\t                },\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"ListItem\",\n\t                    \"position\": 3,\n\t                    \"name\": \"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction\"\n\t                }\n\t            ]\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"WebSite\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#website\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/\",\n\t            \"name\": \"C4ISRNet\",\n\t            \"description\": \"Media for the Intelligence-Age Military | C4ISRNET\",\n\t            \"publisher\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#organization\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"potentialAction\": [\n\t                {\n\t                    \"@type\": \"SearchAction\",\n\t                    \"target\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"EntryPoint\",\n\t                        \"urlTemplate\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"\n\t                    },\n\t                    \"query-input\": {\n\t                        \"@type\": \"PropertyValueSpecification\",\n\t                        \"valueRequired\": true,\n\t                        \"valueName\": \"search_term_string\"\n\t                    }\n\t                }\n\t            ],\n\t            \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\"\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Organization\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#organization\",\n\t            \"name\": \"C4ISRNet\",\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/\",\n\t            \"logo\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c4isrnet-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/c4isrnet-logo-white.png\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"C4ISRNet\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"\n\t            }\n\t        },\n\t        {\n\t            \"@type\": \"Person\",\n\t            \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1\",\n\t            \"name\": \"migration\",\n\t            \"image\": {\n\t                \"@type\": \"ImageObject\",\n\t                \"inLanguage\": \"en-US\",\n\t                \"@id\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec\",\n\t                \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"contentUrl\": \"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\n\t                \"caption\": \"migration\"\n\t            },\n\t            \"url\": \"https:\\\/\\\/one.sightlinemg.com\\\/c4isrnet\\\/author\\\/migration\\\/\"\n\t        }\n\t    ]\n\t}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction - C4ISRNet","description":"The Navy has never been closer to fielding directed-energy weapons.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction","og_description":"The Navy has never been closer to fielding directed-energy weapons.","og_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/","og_site_name":"C4ISRNet","article_published_time":"2019-05-06T16:34:13+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-08T19:49:18+00:00","author":"Geoff Ziezulewicz","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Geoff Ziezulewicz","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/"},"author":{"name":"migration","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1"},"headline":"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction","datePublished":"2019-05-06T16:34:13+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T19:49:18+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/"},"wordCount":1005,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Correa2.jpg.jpg","articleSection":["Daily Brief","Home","IT and Networks","Newsletters"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/","name":"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction - C4ISRNet","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Correa2.jpg.jpg","datePublished":"2019-05-06T16:34:13+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-08T19:49:18+00:00","description":"The Navy has never been closer to fielding directed-energy weapons.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Correa2.jpg.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Correa2.jpg.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/2019\/05\/06\/pew-pew-pew-laser-armed-warships-no-longer-science-fiction\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/","ad_zone":"home"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"IT and Networks","item":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/it-networks\/","ad_zone":"it-networks"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Pew! Pew! Pew! Laser-armed warships no longer science fiction"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#website","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/","name":"C4ISRNet","description":"Media for the Intelligence-Age Military | C4ISRNET","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#organization","name":"C4ISRNet","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c4isrnet-logo-white.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/c4isrnet-logo-white.png","caption":"C4ISRNet"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/#\/schema\/person\/cc76c831bb37a926738c8391fca7a3b1","name":"migration","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=gcf4cb6ee0ec29e49e7a963234e4340ec","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/9e8d47be443ce94ce7fc357677b5f9c70235bb1f59e7267a102a74af58c04f59?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"migration"},"url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/author\/migration\/"}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"C4ISRNet","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet","push-errors":false,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Correa2.jpg.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26758","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=26758"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26758\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":26760,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/26758\/revisions\/26760"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=26758"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=26758"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=26758"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/one.sightlinemg.com\/c4isrnet\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=26758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}