Drones are on the battlefield. Cannons are too painful to hit small birds. Arms dealers invest huge sums of money to find nemesis.

As defense companies ramp up investments to accelerate the development of cost-effective technologies capable of destroying drones, the urgency of finding effective countermeasures becomes increasingly apparent. Recent reports highlight that companies like the USA’s RTX, Europe’s MBDA, and the UK’s QinetiQ are pouring substantial resources into creating low-cost, high-powered laser weapons designed to penetrate metal and dismantle electronic equipment. Notably, the UK’s Ministry of Defense is making strides with its DragonFire project.

Earlier this year, both the UK and the US were compelled to intercept drones fired by the Houthi movement at a steep cost of millions of dollars in missiles aimed at protecting commercial vessels in the Red Sea, underscoring the issue of “cost asymmetry.”

James Black, a defense researcher at Rand Europe, commented on the economic impracticality of this approach: “Using missiles costing over a million dollars to intercept drones valued at only $100 or $1,000 is not a sustainable solution from a financial standpoint.”

The US Army has already achieved significant milestones by using high-powered lasers to down drones in the Middle East, sparking interest among military forces in countries like the UK, France, Russia, China, and South Korea, all of whom are actively developing directed energy weapons.

According to the Financial Times, the UK’s DragonFire laser weapon is reportedly on a fast track for deployment on naval vessels, moving up its timeline by five years to 2027. The system is capable of engaging aerial targets at an estimated cost of around £10 per shot, with accuracy precise enough to hit a one-pound coin from one kilometer away.

The DragonFire initiative is a collaborative effort involving a team of 150 engineers and scientists from MBDA, QinetiQ, and Leonardo. The laser prototype currently boasts a rated power output of 50 kW, although its range remains classified. However, operational limitations persist; it must be used on stable platforms with sufficient power supplies and favorable weather conditions. Additionally, while the construction of laser systems is expensive, it doesn’t necessarily translate to substantial cost savings overall.