UK to field DragonFire HELW in 2027

European missile house MBDA has been awarded a £316 million ($641 million) contract to deliver new DragonFire High Energy Laser Weapon (HELW) systems to the Royal Navy from 2027. The system achieved a UK first in its latest test by shooting down high-speed drones.

The UK Ministry of Defence (UK MoD) says this pioneering program is part of the Strategic Defence Review’s commitment to bring into service innovative Directed Energy Weapons.  DragonFire’s most recent trials at the MOD’s Hebrides range involved drones which can fly up to 650km/h, including a UK first of above-the-horizon tracking, targeting and shooting down such drones.

As part of the Strategic Defence Review (SDR), DragonFire is the first HELW entering service from a European nation, representing one of the most advanced directed energy weapons programmes in NATO. The SDR backed the UK Directed Energy Weapon work with a further investment of nearly £1 billion ($2 billion) during this Parliamentary term alone.

The DragonFire is understood to be in the 50kW class; Australia company EOS has manufactured and sold into an undisclosed country in Europe a 100kW HELW, Apollo.

MBDA UK will work in partnership with QinetiQ and Leonardo to develop the capability that will be delivered almost five years faster and be continuously improved, representing a fundamentally different rapid approach to defence procurement, says the UK MoD.

“This latest contract for DragonFire is another significant milestone,” said Chris Allam, MBDA UK Managing Director. “It allows us to continue with the next phase of the program and re-affirms the UK’s intent to be at the forefront of laser directed energy weapons.”

The laser system costs just £10 per shot, it adds, and is accurate enough to hit a £1 coin from a kilometre away. It is a more cost-effective method in comparison to traditional missile systems, which can cost hundreds of thousands, or millions, of pounds per shot. DragonFire will be fitted to a Royal Navy Type 45 destroyer by 2027 – five years faster than originally planned, says the Ministry.