Laser Wars

Laser Wars

The Air Force Is Taking Another Run at Airborne Laser Weapons

The service is planning a new airborne laser weapon initiative for fiscal year 2027.

Jared Keller's avatar
Jared Keller
Dec 12, 2025
∙ Paid
An RQ-4 Global Hawk unmanned aircraft with a notional laser weapon. (Laser Wars photo illustration/US Air Force)

When I wrote that the US Air Force appeared to be giving up on airborne high-energy laser weapons back in July, I missed the mark.

Laser Wars previously reported that the Air Force’s fiscal year 2026 budget request zeroed out funding for airbor…

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