Sci-Fi Weapons to Join US Arsenal?

marct22 writes to tell us CNet is reporting that the next weapons coming out of the US arsenal could be stepping right off the pages of science fiction to be there. From the article: "By the end of this year, the Air Force plans to conduct a first, fully loaded test flight of its Airborne Laser, a jumbo jet packed with gear designed to shoot down enemy missiles half a world away, at the speed of light. The ABL also packs a megawatt-class punch--it's not exactly your garden-variety laser pointer."

Comments

Re:Oh my gosh

[MMaestro]

Uh, weren't depleted uranium weapons first and only used during the Gulf War and then almost immediately decommissioned when the U.S. military suddenly realized they couldn't even clean up the destroyed U.S. tanks that used them? The fact that U.S. soldiers were handling the stuff BARE HANDED sometimes didn't help either. (Cue Gulf War Syndrome cases 2+ years later.)

As for depleted uranium bombs being used in Yugoslavia, I have no clue where the parent post got that. Given the amount of media attention given to the war at the time (ZOMG genocide in Europe again?! Its a modern day Hitler, someone bring Churchill back from the dead!11!!) I think this fact (if it was true) would be more common knowledge.