US Navy to begin deploying laser weaponry on ships - Polidicks

[quote]WASHINGTON — The Navy is going to sea for the first time with a laser attack weapon that has been shown in tests to disable patrol boats and blind or destroy surveillance drones. A prototype shipboard laser will be deployed on a converted amphibious transport and docking ship in the Persian Gulf, where Iranian fast-attack boats have harassed American warships and where the government in Tehran is building remotely piloted aircraft carrying surveillance pods and, some day potentially, rockets. The laser will not be operational until next year, but the announcement Monday by Adm. Jonathan W. Greenert, the chief of naval operations, seemed meant as a warning to Iran not to step up activity in the gulf in the next few months if tensions increase because of sanctions and the impasse in negotations over the Iranian nuclear program. The Navy released video and still images of the laser weapon burning through a drone during a test-firing. [/quote] [url]http://www.nytimes.com/2013/04/09/world/navy-deploying-laser-weapon-prototype-in-persian-gulf.html?_r=0[/url]

Dammit, i lost a bet. I had a bet on with my friend, that military forces would use Railguns before using any form of laser weaponry. Tits, there goes £15

[QUOTE=Tomthetechy;40212420]Dammit, i lost a bet. I had a bet on with my friend, that military forces would use Railguns before using any form of laser weaponry. Tits, there goes £15[/QUOTE] To be fair, it's not weaponry in the traditional sense. It's more like a defensive system.

[QUOTE=Tomthetechy;40212420]Dammit, i lost a bet. I had a bet on with my friend, that military forces would use Railguns before using any form of laser weaponry. Tits, there goes £15[/QUOTE] The Navy discontinued the Railgun after the call for budget cuts went through.

[QUOTE=Tomthetechy;40212420]Dammit, i lost a bet. I had a bet on with my friend, that military forces would use Railguns before using any form of laser weaponry. Tits, there goes £15[/QUOTE] What a very arbitrary and unusual bet.

[QUOTE=Canuhearme?;40212493]The Navy discontinued the Railgun after the call for budget cuts went through.[/QUOTE] They've cancelled that thing at least ten times, don't even think that this time will stick either.

[QUOTE=Tomthetechy;40212420]Dammit, i lost a bet. I had a bet on with my friend, that military forces would use Railguns before using any form of laser weaponry. Tits, there goes £15[/QUOTE] Laser "weaponry" have been used/existed for a while. [URL]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZM-87[/URL] That's a mounted laser rifle, but due to the blinding weapon ban the manufacturer stopped making them.

[QUOTE=Canuhearme?;40212493]The Navy discontinued the Railgun after the call for budget cuts went through.[/QUOTE] That royally blows.

[QUOTE=Swebonny;40212577]Laser "weaponry" have been used/existed for a while. [URL]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZM-87[/URL] That's a mounted laser rifle, but due to the blinding weapon ban the manufacturer stopped making them.[/QUOTE] "Roughly twenty-two of the devices were produced by the company Norinco before production ceased in 2000 as a result of the 1995 United Nations Protocol on Blinding Laser Weapons ban" - [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZM-87[/url] 'Hey Dude.' 'Yeah?' 'Weren't these banned, like, 5 years ago? Shouldn't we like... stop making them?' 'Meh.'

will we ever see gatling lasers

Good, now the Mutons won't royally fuck our shit up.

[QUOTE=Canuhearme?;40212493]The Navy discontinued the Railgun after the call for budget cuts went through.[/QUOTE] They're still being researched. They're just self-funded. Navy just cut funding for them. There are multiple companies developing them. [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Railgun#As_weapons[/url]

[QUOTE=Canuhearme?;40212493]The Navy discontinued the Railgun after the call for budget cuts went through.[/QUOTE] How can you say that when cancellation news was way back in 2011? And FP was raving about this last year: [url]http://www.engadget.com/2012/02/29/railgun-test-fire-video/[/url]

I notice a tragic lack of sharks being mentioned in the article.

[QUOTE=Canuhearme?;40212493]The Navy discontinued the Railgun after the call for budget cuts went through.[/QUOTE] BEA is making one and our navy is going to use it.

[QUOTE=FLIPPY;40214656]BEA is making one and our navy is going to use it.[/QUOTE] BAE*

The future is not laser pewing squids, it's laser dolphins :D

[QUOTE=IKTM;40212969]Good, now the Mutons won't royally fuck our shit up.[/QUOTE] The main application is actually taking down sectopods bro.

[QUOTE=Tomthetechy;40212420]Dammit, i lost a bet. I had a bet on with my friend, that military forces would use Railguns before using any form of laser weaponry. Tits, there goes £15[/QUOTE] Railguns are a bit more complicated, because instead of being used defensively (like the lazer), they're supposed to replace much of the harder-hitting guns on a ship, ALA so they can hit shit 6+ miles away.

If laser weaponry ever becomes standard, I wonder what's going to happen to people who think something futuristic is dumb because they have laser weaponry instead of ballistic weapons.

[QUOTE=Bloodshot12;40216243]If laser weaponry ever becomes standard, I wonder what's going to happen to people who think something futuristic is dumb because they have laser weaponry instead of ballistic weapons.[/QUOTE] Laser weaponry can be amazing if it is efficient, long range lasers would eliminate the need for complicated sniper training due to not having to learn ballistic data with temperature, wind, or altitude. Just point and bam the guy has a burning hole in his chest.

[QUOTE=Empty_Shadow;40215895]The main application is actually taking down sectopods bro.[/QUOTE] Taking on a sectopod with anything less than an ALLOY CANNON is just silly, dude.

What happens if the enemy is reflective?

[QUOTE=SubbyV-2;40216420]What happens if the enemy is reflective?[/QUOTE] Then god help you.

[url]http://www.nytimes.com/video/2013/04/08/world/100000002160542/us-navy-laser-weapon-demonstration.html?ref=world[/url] Here's a direct link to the video of it destroying a drone if you're interested

[QUOTE=codemaster85;40216400]Laser weaponry can be amazing if it is efficient, long range lasers would eliminate the need for complicated sniper training due to not having to learn ballistic data with temperature, wind, or altitude. Just point and bam the guy has a burning hole in his chest.[/QUOTE] But that's only if they can get it down to sci-fi style levels of miniaturization (which would require massive improvements in many technologies). It's going to be ship or plane mounted for a while.

[QUOTE=IKTM;40216402]Taking on a sectopod with anything less than an ALLOY CANNON is just silly, dude.[/QUOTE] Heavy plasma, yo.

[QUOTE=Lethaxx;40212525]What a very arbitrary and unusual bet.[/QUOTE] Dunno, me and my friends talk about stuff like that a lot, so he isn't alone. I've been arguing that "energy" weapons wouldn't be efficient and that kinetic weaponry would keep dominating for a long time, here's hoping I don't get proved wrong. These are far from being ready to be used as main weaponry though, they'd have trouble damaging most vehicles, and that's without them being shielded against it (when lasers catch on, expect vehicles to be armoured against them).

[QUOTE=Winner;40215873]I think you mean Sharks with frickin' laser beams attached to their heads[/QUOTE] I approve.

The laser! :)