German Laser Destroys Targets More Than 1Km Away

kkleiner writes "A German company has brought us one step closer to the kinds of shootouts only seen in Sci-Fi films. Düsseldorf-based Rheinmetall Defense recently tested a 50kW, high-energy laser at their proving ground facility in Switzerland. First, the system sliced through a 15mm- (~0.6 inches) thick steel girder from a kilometer away. Then, from a distance of two kilometers, it shot down a handful of drones as they nose-dived toward the surface at 50 meters per second."

Comments

Now we need flintsteel armor.

[Anonymous Coward]

Does anyone else think of the Bolo books when reading this.

Still too weak

[cheesybagel]

100 kW is considered to be militarily useful, 1 MW is considered to be a battle grade laser.

There are 100 kW solid state lasers available to the US military so this is not exactly leading edge military laser power. The interesting bit about this article is the revolver design they used.