The US Army have successfully tested a powerful new weapon which has the ability to shoot swarms of drones out of the sky without the need for a single missile or projectile.
Rather aptly then it’s called the ‘Phaser’ and it is to be precise a High-Power Microwave weapon.
Developed by US defence company Raytheon, the Phaser’s development was top secret until now.
Powered by a diesel generator the ‘Phaser’ is able to direct intensely powerful microwaves over a large area allowing the weapon to disable not just one drone but an entire swarm in one activation.
A video has been released showing a weapons test in 2013 where the weapon was successfully able to disable two drones simultaneously.
With smaller drones and UAVs increasingly becoming cheaper and more capable the fear is that terrorist organisations or rival militaries will be able to cheaply produce hundreds of small weaponised drones effectively creating ‘swarms’.
Raytheon’s ‘Phaser’ would then be able to act as an effective deterrent to these swarms, disabling potentially tens of vehicles with one shot.
The US military is increasingly experimenting with new technologies and weapons that go far beyond the conventional bullets and missiles that have been the staple backbone of providing an offensive capability.