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FORT SILL, Okla.,\u00a0March 20, 2018<\/span>\u00a0\/PRNewswire\/ —\u00a0Forty-five unmanned aerial vehicles and drones fell out of the sky during a U.S. Army exercise after Raytheon’s (NYSE: \u00a0RTN) advanced high-power microwave and laser dune buggy engaged and destroyed them. These common threats were knocked down during a Maneuver Fires Integrated Experiment at the U.S. Army Fires Center of Excellence.<\/p>\nThe event, known as MFIX, brought military and industry leaders together to demonstrate ways to bridge the Army’s capability gaps in long-range fires and maneuver short-range air defense.<\/p>\n
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- Raytheon’s high-power microwave system engaged multiple UAV swarms, downing 33 drones, two and three at a time.<\/li>\n
- Raytheon’s high energy laser, or HEL, system identified, tracked, engaged and killed 12 airborne, maneuvering Class I and II UAVs, and destroyed six stationary mortar projectiles.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
“The speed and low cost per engagement of directed energy is revolutionary in protecting our troops against drones,” said Dr.\u00a0Thomas Bussing<\/span>, Raytheon Advanced Missile Systems vice president. “We have spent decades perfecting the high-power microwave system, which may soon give our military a significant advantage against this proliferating threat.”<\/p>\n
Raytheon and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory worked together under a\u00a0$2 million<\/span>\u00a0contract to test and demonstrate high-power microwave, counter-UAV capabilities.<\/p>\n
“Our customer needed a solution, and they needed it fast,” said Dr.\u00a0Ben Allison<\/span>, director of Raytheon’s HEL product line. “So, we took what we’ve learned and combined it with combat-proven components to rapidly deliver a small, self-contained and easily deployed counter-UAV system.”<\/p>\n