We grew up in the 80s and laser weapons were a fiction often seen in the animated series G.I Joe and The Transformers. But this science fiction has become a reality since half a decade ago after it was used by several world armies for the purpose of repelling missile and mortar attacks.
Lockheed Martin has recently delivered an Indirect Fires Protection Capability-High Energy Laser (IFPC-HEL) laser weapon with a power output of 300kW. This is 10 times more powerful than the 30 kW ATHENA (Advanced Test High Energy Asset) tested by Lockheed in 2017.
Like ATHENA, IFPC-HEL is designed as a system to repel missile, artillery, drone and mortar attacks. With higher power it can destroy targets faster from a longer distance. Laser anti-missile systems are also seen as cheaper than anti-missile systems such as Patriot and Trophy used on bases and tanks.
The laser system is mature enough that Israel plans to replace the existing Iron Dome system with the Iron Beam laser system. The cost of each Iron Beam "bullet" is only around RM16 compared to hundreds of thousands for each Iron Dome missile.