Laser Designators – Smaller and Yet Efficient

Laser Designators – Smaller and Yet Efficient

laser designator

This post is also available in: heעברית (Hebrew)

By Arie Egozi

I point you shoot. That is the sequence that is becoming more common in war zones. The availability of laser designators in the sky above is making the hunt for targets much easier, as a matter of fact almost too easy.

The use of laser designators has become more popular as the use of laser-directed weapons increased.

So far, the designators were relatively heavy, a fact that required a large enough platform if the “finger” was pointed from the air.

But miniaturization has reached places that are on the verge of science fiction, and that makes the use of aerial laser designators a common sight.

One good example is the designator carried by mini UAV’s, by EL OP, the Elbit systems subsidiary.

The Miniature designator Module (MDM) weighs 100 grams and is assembled by using “special microscopic” techniques.

According to EL OP, the smallest laser designator allows mini UAV’s  to close sensor to shooter cycles in record time.

Other companies in Israel and in other countries also develop mini laser designators, a fact that allows to use them on many platforms, even very small ones.

So the mini or rather micro laser designators are creating a revolution in designating targets for laser guided weapons. Instead of using one “public” designator in an area, the micro system can be put on a large number of UAS’s and that will result in very accurate hits of the laser weapons.