AC-130W Stinger II gunship. (Photo : USAF)
High-energy "slab lasers" are emerging as a leading candidate for a battlefield laser system the U.S. Air Force intends to mount aboard its AC-130 gunship to destroy drones, rockets and other targets.
The Air Force said solid-state slab lasers have evolved to a point of maturity where they can participate in field tests where a specially modified Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) AC-130 gunship will fire the slab laser at surface targets.
Slab lasers are a class of high-power solid-state bulk lasers where the laser crystal (or gain medium) that amplifies light at laser wavelengths via stimulated emission has the form of a slab.
A study by the Air Force Scientific Advisory Board found a slab laser fits within the size, weight and power limits of an AC-130. It also determined that onboard power generator of the Lockheed AC-130J has enough power to fire a laser multiple times.
AFSOC will eventually fly a laser equipped AC-13OJ in place of a Bushmaster 30 mm autocannon mounted on the aircraft's left side.
In the battlefield, the laser will be used to fire on enemy surface-to-air missiles (SAM) or shoulder-launched SAMs. The laser will also be used to attack other targets, as well.
Last July, the Air Force announced a Lockheed AC-130W Stinger II gunship belonging to AFSOC will test the military's first solid state laser mounted aboard a combat aircraft.
The AC-130W is normally armed with one 30 mm Bushmaster cannon; AGM-176 Griffins (a precision guided missile with a 6 kg warhead) and GBU-39 Small Diameter Bombs (SDBs), a 110 kg precision-guided glide bomb.
With its advanced targeting capabilities and precise weapons, the Whiskey is normally used for close air support, air interdiction and force protection.
The laser cannon will occupy the 30 mm cannon position forward of the wing where airflow is less disturbed. AFSOC wants to either install a 60 kW or a 120 kW solid state laser to be used for knocking-out stationary vehicles, aircraft and fixed communications sites such as radio towers.
The sole user of the various models of the AC-130 is the United States Air Force. In the Air Force's inventory are the AC-130H Spectre, AC-130U Spooky, AC-130J Ghostrider and AC-130W Stinger II.
The gunship squadrons are part of AFSOC, a component of the United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM).
The Air Force will first test the laser weapons on larger aircraft such as the AC-130 and C-17 Globemaster until miniaturization allows these powerful weapons to be mounted on fighter jets such as the F-15 Eagle, F-16 Fighting Falcon, F-22 Raptor and the F-35.
