India's Advancement in Directed Energy Technology

Laser Leap: India Enters Directed Energy Inner Circle

India launches 30-kilowatt laser weapon system to attack drones and aircrafts at a distance of up to 5 km.

India has joined the select group of countries working on high-powered Directed Energy Weapons (DEWs) after the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully demonstrated and tested a 30-kilowatt laser-based system.

Designed by DRDO’s Centre for High Energy Systems and Sciences (CHESS), the laser weapon can target aerial targets such as drones, missiles, and helicopters within a 5-kilometer range. The system was successfully tested at DRDO’s Kurnool facility in Andhra Pradesh.

The laser weapon has a 360-degree Electro-Optical/Infrared (EO/IR) sensor for effective threat recognition and is capable of being deployed on ground-based and shipborne platforms. Defense experts state that this achievement represents a huge step toward the modernization of Indian warfare technology, particularly amid growing threats from drones.

With this advancement, India becomes a part of an elite group of countries such as the United States, China, and Israel, which have been developing their laser-based defense systems.