New British Weapon Looks Familiar (If You Grew Up Collecting 80's Toys)

 First, the story:

Britain this week showed off a new laser weapon that its military says could deliver lethal missile or aircraft defense at around $13 a shot, potentially saving tens of millions of dollars over the cost of missile interceptors that do the job now.

Newly released video of a test of what the United Kingdom’s Defense Ministry calls the DragonFire, a laser directed energy weapon (LDEW) system, captured what the ministry says was the successful use of the laser against an aerial target during a January demonstration in Scotland.

“It’s a potential game changer for air defense,” the video says as a bright laser beam pierces the night sky over a firing range in the remote Hebrides archipelago, creating a ball of light as it hits its target.

The Defense Ministry says the DragonFire can precisely hit a target as small as a coin “over long ranges,” but it did not offer specifics. The exact range of the weapon is classified, it said.

The laser beam can cut through metal “leading to structural failure or more impactful results if the warhead is targeted,” a UK Defense Ministry statement said.

And it is claimed it also take out its targets for a tiny fraction of what current air defense missiles cost.

The Defense Ministry put the price of firing a 10-second laser burst at around $13. In contrast, the Standard Missile-2 used by the United States Navy for air defense costs more than $2 million per shot.

“It has the potential to be a long-term low-cost alternative to certain tasks missiles currently carry out,” a January statement from the UK Defense Ministry said.

The cost of air defense missiles has become a hot topic in defense circles in recent years as low-cost drones have shown their effectiveness in on battlefields in Ukraine and in attacks by Houthi rebels against commercial and military ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

Analysts have questioned how long the US, UK and their partners can keep using multi-million-dollar missiles against Houthi drones that can in some cases be acquired for well under $100,000.

Meanwhile expensive air defense systems from Western allies have been crucial to Ukraine’s ability to defend itself from attacks by Russian missiles and drones.

So here's a pic of the LDEW:

Got it? Now here's where the reality of 2024 merges with 80's military fiction:

Oh, and name "DragonFire?" That's the same name of the weapon used in the (DIC version) of the G.I. Joe cartoon.