Lockheed Martin is considering adding expensive laser weapons to their F-35 jet, according to The Daily Caller. The 60-kilowatt fiber laser works by combining beams together that are created inside fiber optics, as opposed to relying on chemical reactions, allowing for more flexibility and customization around missions.
"We are absolutely looking at concepts for integration," said Robert Afzal, the company's senior fellow of laser systems and sensors.
According to the Air Force, the laser has been in development for over 40 years and should be ready for deployment by 2020.
"Everybody thinks you have a tendency to talk about high-powered microwaves and lasers and it's kind of science fiction," said Herbert Carlisle, Air Combat Command leader. "But this is a reality...I believe that we will have a directed energy capability in a pod that can be mounted on a fighter aircraft very soon."
Over the laser's 40-year development cycle, significant advancements have been made in the realm of line-of-sight stabilization, adaptive optics, point and control and fiber laser devices that utilize spectral beam combining, according to Photonics.com.
In terms of benefits to the F-35, integrating lasers into its design will increase its effectiveness at battling large numbers of drones, mortars and rockets, according to RT.
