Developers Explore Options To Put Lasers on Bombers

It seems that the AF is giving a serious look at placing lasers aboard its bomber fleet. Once the technology allows for a solid state laser greater than 100 Kw, the AF says they would be ideal for self defence. I wonder, if that is for incomming missiles or to activly hit opposing fighters. No information as to range etc has been given, but if you look at the ABL program it should have a decent range. One of the reasons that the Lockheed design won the JSF design was the fact that the engine could be coupled to a drive shaft to generate power and the lift fan in the STOVL version could have a energy weapon instead. Darth Vader your plane is ready

U.S. Air Force and industry weapon developers are assessing the feasibility of integrating lasers on some of the service's bomber fleet, although missions and timelines to do so remain undefined.

Nevertheless, the interest expressed by USAF officials in upgrading B-1B and B-2 bombers with laser technology could mark an important turning point for the service. Senior officials have long envisioned moving directed-energy applications from the laboratory to the operational community, but--with the exception of infrared jammers for transport aircraft--little progress has been made in fielding such equipment.

Industry representatives working on the Boeing B-1B and Northrop Grumman B-2A say the Air Force Research Laboratory has been interested in examining what might be involved in marrying the aircraft with directed-energy payloads. However, an AFRL representative notes that there are no formal programs underway, nor has money been set aside for engineering activities. "What we do have is an interest to pursue technology in this direction, and we are looking to enter into discussions with folks who could use our expertise in this area," he added.

Ummm... where did you get your info? Anyways it always has puzzled me why the ABL is only used for defense? Couldn't it work against aircraft and ground vehicles aswell? Eh just some thoughts...

yeah you could use it for other purposes, and once the ABL in up in the sky i'm sure the enemy will also find that out.

Also FredT you can't compare this to the ABL, thats a chemical laser not solid state. I don't think they can generate enough juice on a bomber to use a solid state laser.

Originally posted by Murcielago
yeah you could use it for other purposes, and once the ABL in up in the sky i'm sure the enemy will also find that out.
Also FredT you can't compare this to the ABL, thats a chemical laser not solid state. I don't think they can generate enough juice on a bomber to use a solid state laser.

Right you are, sorry I was trying to compare the relative range options of a laser. If you are going after AA misiles is one thing, but if going to try to use it it an anit aircraft type defence, you will need a decent range. You are correct there is no way you could get all that chemical payload into the air and expecta decent range plus a bomb load. Solid state with "pumped diodes" is the way to go.

Originally posted by Sigma
Ummm... where did you get your info? Anyways it always has puzzled me why the ABL is only used for defense? Couldn't it work against aircraft and ground vehicles aswell? Eh just some thoughts...

ABL will be used against :

1. Balistic misilles.
2. Low orbit satellites (destroying enemy spy network for example)
3. Aircrafts
4. Cruise misilles.

As you can see it is not only pure defense weapon. Of course it will work best against balistic misilles and satelites, the use against targets flying in atmosphere will be limited by weather effects (shorter range etc.).

Good find! I 've heard of this once before a long time ago. I think they were thinking about putting a laser weapon on the B-2 back in the early concept phase. At that time there were no contactors involved on a large scale, the Advanced Technology Bomber or ATB as it was then called was only an internal paper study at Wright-Patterson AFB, under the code name: Saber Penetrator.

Tim
ATS Director Of Counter-Ignorance

Well, they're studying ways to defend civilian aircrafts against MANPADS and laser was one possibility so why not to develop same kind of system for military planes.

Originally posted by E_T
Well, they're studying ways to defend civilian aircrafts against MANPADS and laser was one possibility so why not to develop same kind of system for military planes.

Right! I forgot about this. I was thinking laser weapons like in the star wars concept where you can destroy incoming missils. What you all are talking about is using lasers to blind sensors. Using lasers for EW isn't new, both the USA and Russia have been working on this since the early 1970's

Tim
ATS Director of Counter-Ignorance

Originally posted by E_T
Well, they're studying ways to defend civilian aircrafts against MANPADS and laser was one possibility so why not to develop same kind of system for military planes.

But the civil plane version should not shoot down misilles, just blind their sensors. Such lasers already exist today.

Originally posted by longbow

Originally posted by E_T
Well, they're studying ways to defend civilian aircrafts against MANPADS and laser was one possibility so why not to develop same kind of system for military planes.

But the civil plane version should not shoot down misilles, just blind their sensors. Such lasers already exist today.

Yeah, if ya have a big ass wallet.
plane defence

Well this sounds like it all came out of a Dale Brown book.

Speaking of which I remembered from the book battleborn that they mounted an antiballistic missile on a B-1, and I was thinking why cant they do the same with a Patriot.