Aerovironment Wins US Army Contract for Laser Drone Defense

The focus is on the E-HEL (Enduring-High Energy Laser) program for countering drones.

AeroVironment’s LOCUST X3 is set to enter mass production.

The LOCUST X3 is equipped with a 30-kW laser and is intended for use against drones in Groups 1–3 (such as the Iranian Shahed-136).

According to AeroVironment, this is the first production contract in U.S. history for a directed-energy weapon system.

I’ve re-entered the market with a small position, because shooting drones out of the sky for $5 per shot instead of using extremely expensive interceptor missiles (whose stockpiles are dwindling anyway) could be a real game-changer.

Alfredo@Oldman

1Mês

YES! This is "Drone Dominance" in the fullest sense.

This development completes the thesis: dominating drone warfare means being able to mass-produce drones, make them increasingly capable, and deploy defensive systems whose marginal cost is low enough to destroy enemy drones at scale.
AVAV has just secured a major industrial validation in precisely that third dimension.

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Aerovironment Wins U.S. Army Contract for Laser Drone Defense