A high-power microwave (HPM) weapon prototype system will be delivered to the US Air Force for deployment to American forces overseas, Raytheon said in a press release on Tuesday
WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 24th September, 2019) A high-power microwave (HPM) weapon prototype system will be delivered to the US Air Force for deployment to American forces overseas, Raytheon said in a press release on Tuesday."Raytheon's HPM system uses directed energy to take down drones," the release said. "HPM's wide beam can disable multiple targets at one time."
The release gave no timetable for the prototype delivery or the weapon's eventual deployment.
The HPM contract follows a separate Air Force contract in which Raytheon will build two prototype high-energy laser systems, also to be deployed overseas.
The HPM and HEL systems can be used independently or together to destroy drones.
The recent attack on a Saudi oil facility using multiple drones illustrated the need for systems that can simultaneously destroy swarms of unmanned aircraft, which are readily available from commercial sources.
