Major Milestone in Counter-Drone Warfare

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A new counter-drone system is the first direct energy weapon said to be able to destroy certain types of drones. The Pentagon has awarded a contract worth nearly $16.3 million to Raytheon for a prototype high-power microwave weapons system.

The system uses microwaves that emit “radio frequencies in a conical beam,” destroying a drone’s circuit with a burst of overwhelming energy.

According to foxnews.com, the U.S. Air Force is sending PHASER overseas — the first direct energy weapon ever fielded and a huge milestone for the controversial weapon system. 

The microwave weapons system is able to target drones that are “less than 55 pounds and fly at altitudes of 1,200 to 3,500 feet at speeds between 100 and 200 knots,” or about 115 to 230 mph, such as the RQ-11 Raven, according to popularmechanics.com.

The US Air Force contract provides for experimentation and field assessment outside the continental United States that includes “but is not limited to 12 months of in-field operation by Air Force personnel against unmanned aerial systems threats,” the Defense Department said in its notification to Congress.