The U.S. military is accelerating the production and deployment of high-energy laser and high-power microwave weapon systems. The primary goal of developing Directed Energy Weapons (DEW) is to counter the threat posed by large-scale, low-cost, and coordinated drone operations. Traditional air defense missiles, while capable of effectively intercepting targets, face challenges such as the cost of interception exceeding that of incoming drones, limited ammunition stockpiles, and difficulties in managing large-scale aerial assaults concurrently.
Directed energy weapons offer an alternative way to intercept threats. Lasers generate concentrated energy to heat targets, destroying their structure, sensors, or flight control components, while high-power microwaves use strong electromagnetic energy to disrupt or damage the electronic equipment of drones, with the potential to affect multiple targets simultaneously. Under suitable weather and power supply conditions, both technologies can significantly reduce reliance on traditional interceptors.
In December 2026, the U.S. Department of Defense plans to conduct DEW anti-drone tests at the Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. These tests aim to evaluate the interception effectiveness, sustained engagement capability, and deployment costs of high-energy laser and high-power microwave systems in real combat environments.
So far, noteworthy progress has been observed in the U.S. Army’s directed energy weapon systems, including the induction of high-energy laser weapons into production, which have already demonstrated effectiveness in real-world operations. Five U.S. military bases have been designated as pilot units for the deployment of lasers and high-power microwaves, with three of them serving as key hubs to support Pacific strategic deterrence. In an interview in August 2026, Matt Ross, Director of the U.S. Army’s Joint Interagency Task Force, stated that these systems will enhance and complement layered drone defense. This pilot program will provide valuable insights into operational environments and assist in homeland defense.
The focus of the Army’s directed energy weapon research and development has shifted from “can it intercept targets?” to “can it sustain operation, work, and supplement existing air defense systems?”
Around August 25, 2026, the Joint Task Force-Southwest Border, stationed at Fort Bliss in Texas, successfully used the Army’s Multi-Purpose High-Energy Laser (AMP-HEL) to destroy three intruding drones along the U.S.-Mexico border. Reports from Northern Command on August 27 highlighted that high-energy laser weapons have already been deployed in border defense operations. By September 4, the AMP-HEL had brought down a total of 11 drones related to drug trafficking.
On September 2, 2026, the U.S. Army and AeroVironment announced a procurement agreement valued at $464.8 million for a “Continuous High-Energy Laser System” (E-HEL), aimed at acquiring 30-kilowatt LOCUST X3 high-energy laser anti-drone weapons. This agreement covers the delivery of dozens of systems over the coming years, along with related support and training. This marks the Army’s first procurement contract for high-energy laser weapon systems. These developments indicate that high-energy laser weapon systems have entered a new phase, now aligned with both mass production and real-world combat deployment.
In an announcement made in July 2026, Michael, the Deputy Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering, indicated that the U.S. military is collaborating with the defense industry to deliver directed energy operational weapons with “deep magazine” capabilities to joint forces, allowing deployment across multiple operational domains. The concept of “deep magazine” is significantly altering the cost balance of air defense interceptors.
According to assessments from AeroVironment, a single engagement cost for the LOCUST X3 high-energy laser system is below $5. The company has the capacity to increase annual production to over 20 systems and plans to further expand in the next two years to align with the Army’s procurement strategy. The system incorporates precise targeting fire control software combined with artificial intelligence for target detection, aiming, and tracking, allowing the laser beam to continually act on moving targets until the desired engagement effect is achieved. If these technologies and production plans materialize as expected, they will drastically lower the U.S. military’s operating costs against drone threats, reduce the expensive consumption of traditional intercept ammunition, and provide a more sustainable air defense option for high-intensity conflict scenarios. Similar directed energy weapons like the LOCUST X3 enable the U.S. Army to establish low-cost, sustainable engagement capabilities, serving as significant complements to traditional missile interceptors.
In contrast to the progressive developments of the Army’s directed energy weapons, the U.S. Navy has achieved these capabilities sooner due to an acute demand for low-cost, deep magazine interceptors in the Western Pacific battlefield. During a congressional hearing, Admiral Paparo of the U.S. Pacific Command pointed out that China has not renounced its intentions to use force against Taiwan despite observing the stalemate in the Russia-Ukraine war; rather, it is likely analyzing operational lessons from Russia to plan a “short, intense, and fact-creating conflict.” Paparo has subsequently warned multiple times that the ammunition consumed in U.S. support for Ukraine and responses to Middle Eastern conflicts is straining the overall munitions stockpile of the American military. He emphasized the need for the U.S. military to accelerate ammunition replenishment and expand defense industrial capacity to address possible high-intensity conflicts in the Indo-Pacific region.
China is attempting to build the world’s largest dual-use drone supply chain, complemented by low-cost cruise missiles and suicide drone stockpiles. A report from the Center for a New American Security (CNAS) released in March of this year indicated that Taiwan and the maritime strike capabilities of the First Island Chain heavily rely on layered air defense and anti-drone systems; should the Chinese military launch large-scale drone swarming attacks in conjunction with multi-layered saturation assaults, relying solely on expensive and limited traditional air defense missiles could make the defensive system vulnerable to rapid ammunition depletion.
Once U.S. naval vessels exhaust costly, standard SM-2 or SM-6 air defense missiles valued at several million dollars, the Mk 41 vertical launch system typically cannot be rapidly reloaded in high-intensity engagements. Ships must often withdraw from combat zones and travel hundreds or even thousands of miles back to bases in Guam, Japan, or Hawaii for resupply. The value of laser and high-power microwave weapons lies in their ability to save expensive interceptor ammunition, allowing directed energy weapons to deal with low-cost, mass attacks and reconnaissance drones, preserving expensive physical interceptors for adversaries’ anti-ship cruise missiles and hypersonic ballistic missiles.
Recognizing the need for fleet survivability, the U.S. Navy has been the first to deploy advanced shipborne high-energy laser systems to the Western Pacific. As early as October 2024, the guided-missile destroyer USS Preble, equipped with the High Energy Laser and Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance (HELIOS) system, was integrated into the Seventh Fleet’s Destroyer Squadron 15, stationed at Yokosuka Naval Base in Japan.
Reports indicate that Preble successfully utilized its 60-kilowatt HELIOS laser system to consecutively down four drones during sea tests in the fall of 2025.
In February 2026, Navy Operations Chief Daryl Caudle expressed in a media statement that, “the time has come for me to express my vision. I fully support this technology and its implementation. I believe it can solve not only naval defense issues but also base protection issues.” He pointed out that new generations of large surface vessels will position directed energy weapons as core assets and may even explore the feasibility of integrating up to one-megawatt laser systems as a significant direction for enhancing the naval fleet’s capabilities.
As of February 2026, the U.S. Navy has installed various levels of directed energy systems aboard nine vessels, forming a defense network that integrates both soft and hard kill capabilities. However, laser weapons in the 30-kilowatt to 60-kilowatt range may still fall short in countering faster and better-protected anti-ship and ground-attack cruise missiles on the Western Pacific battlefield. To elevate the upper limits of directed energy air defense capabilities to intercept certain cruise missiles, the U.S. Department of Defense awarded a development agreement for the Joint Laser Weapon System (JLWS) to Lockheed Martin and nLIGHT Defense on July 9, 2026. This initial funding totaled $86 million, with a total planned investment reaching $847 million. The JLWS’s initial prototype system will have a rated power of 150 kilowatts, with future expansions aimed at 300 to 500 kilowatts, employing a standard container structure to enable deployment on both land and maritime platforms.
For U.S. forces stationed at various points in the First Island Chain, a mature 500-kilowatt laser system could provide extra firepower to integrated air defense systems at forward positions like Guam, complementing the Army’s indirect fire protection capabilities. However, the actual interception range and types of targets will depend on system power, engagement distances, target characteristics, and the surrounding environment. If integrated into a layered air defense network in the future, these systems would help alleviate some of the defensive loads placed on traditional interceptor missiles.
Nonetheless, the operational use of directed energy weapon systems will encounter limitations based on environmental and resource factors. For instance, when the U.S. Navy conducts “Agile Combat Deployment” in the Pacific island chain or when the Marine Corps executes island-hopping operations, challenges such as limited power supply and logistical maintenance in remote islands may arise. The high temperatures, humidity, and salt fog environmental conditions in the Western Pacific can also severely impact directed energy weapons. In practice, simply installing laser weapons on military vessels may not necessarily translate to sustained combat capability in the absence of complete power assurance, breakthroughs in cooling technology, and clear tactical regulations.
To address the power and air defense needs of frontline forces, the U.S. Navy Research Laboratory (NRL) announced on June 17, 2026, a collaboration with Boeing and the U.S. Army Ground Vehicle Systems Center to demonstrate a compact laser system capable of both “long-range wireless power transmission” and “anti-drone operations.” In tests, this system first precisely projected a high-energy laser beam to a distant receiver, converting it into power, and then switched to air defense mode, intercepting incoming targets. This technology aids in addressing the power demands of frontline forces operating under harsh conditions, thereby enhancing short-range air defense firepower networks.
In conclusion, the U.S. military’s advancement in directed energy weapons aims to establish a layered air defense system capable of enduring consumption and rationally allocating interceptor munitions. Although high-energy lasers and high-power microwaves currently cannot replace traditional missile defenses, advancements in power levels, increased production, and accumulated experience could gradually change the cost structure for the U.S. military’s response to large-scale saturation attacks, lowering the dependency of air defense systems on physical interceptor munitions.