USA: A laser cannon that fires at the speed of light

Their shots are more precious than a bullet, invisible to the human eye and can destroy an enemy weapon at a distance or knock down a drone in mid-flight. This is the new laser weapon of the US Navy that, after three years of testing, has come into service fully operational on the USS Ponce.

To the ship of the US Navy, featured in the Persian Gulf, has been able to access a team from CNN to be able to tell at first how this strange laser cannon works. The weapon, which the US Navy started using on the same ship in 2014 in its testing phase, is not a prototype. It is currently fully developed and 100% operational.
"It's more accurate than a bullet," says Captain Wells of USS Ponce to CNN. "It is not a niche weapon that, like other weapon systems, only works well against aerial targets, surface targets or targets on land, in this case it is a versatile weapon that can be used against a large number of Objectives, "he explains. Unlike what happens with missiles or guns, firing this weapon is very cheap to the American army. Each shot costs less than a dollar to the taxpayer and its speed is 50,000 times greater than an intercontinental ballistic missile.

Leaning on a rotating turret that the operator manages with a controller similar to that of a game console, the cannon fires practically at the speed of light and in a way totally invisible to the human eye since it operates in an invisible part of the electromagnetic spectrum.

"It's about throwing a massive amount of photons at an approaching object," Lieutenant Cale Huges told CNN. Huges, who is in charge of laser weapon systems explains that firing this weapon "we do not have to worry about the wind, we do not have to worry about distance or other factors. We are able to reach the targets at the speed of light ".

 In the maneuvers witnessed by the North American television crew, as in a propaganda video broadcast by the US Navy in 2014, show the power of the weapon when shooting at a Dron and, in the case of the propaganda video, Also show their potential by firing on a rocket launcher coupled to the top of a boat.

Following the success of this first version, the US military is developing an improved version with which to shoot down missiles in mid-flight. In total, this defense system costs 40 million dollars, is managed with a staff of only three people and has a generator of its own to operate.