AV releases upgraded laser

AV displayed Locust X3 for the first time at the AUSA Global Force conference on 24 March. (AV)

The newest version of AV's high-energy laser (HEL) is making its debut at the Association of the United States Army (AUSA) Global Force conference on 24 March.

With the capability to support more than 30 kW of electrical power, Locust X3 is more hardened for combat zones, such as maritime or coastal environments, John Garrity, vice-president of directed energy systems at AV, told Janes in an interview on 20 March. It can take on larger unmanned aircraft systems (UASs).

It can lase continuously for “minutes” and stay on intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance mode for “days”, said Garrity.

Hardening the system also means making it easy to repair and sustain during extended combat operations. Unlike the previous iteration of Locust, sensors are containerised in modules, said Garrity. They can be removed by the military, limiting the need for field service representatives or taking the weapon back to a depot. X3 runs on battery banks that power the laser and the rest of the weapon. “Even though we're increasing the power of the system, we won't see a change in its overall effective range,” he said.

“Transitioning that to be ready for the fight at sea or in coastal regions is really something we put a lot of calories behind,” said Garrity. That includes electronic ruggedisation, mitigation of salt fog, and measures to protect from corrosion.

For the maritime versions, the X3 can run directly off ship power, Garrity said.

The electrical architecture for the marinised version enables sailors to “be able to just pull and charge directly off of that system without having to have those battery banks”, he said.