[MB.]

He who thinks they can block Damocles, think again

In the struggle between offense and defense the problem with the post-hydrogen bomb era is that the defense has never really been given a chance. Soviet and American experiments and doctrine were at best primitive and today the non-proliferation mantra has silenced even the possibility of discussing openly missile defense and star wars and the like.

A shocking state of affairs, truly. I would never deny that given the current weight of little popular interest, dearmament programs, and the resurgence of the Sanctuary doctrine, the concept of missile defense and (if I may be so bold) or space power itself, is effectively dead.

Mw class Airborne Laser as reffered to by Zagadka and the 100 kW Advanced Tactical Laser noted above by MB.

Excuse my ignorance, but I had not actaully specified neither- although I presumed that the current YAL 1 was a megawatt capable laser (which is seems it is). WRT to the ATL, presumably this is a device for targeting mortar rounds and RPGs and the like?

[Typhoon]

A shocking state of affairs, truly.

I think strategic missile defense has had a lot of interest recently (its never really gone away) and it remains a fantasy for many conservative thinkers, while tactical missile defence has become industry standard. The problem with strategic missile defence is that in the nuclear age the stakes are so high it can never be an effective option. None of the proposals submitted in the most recent outbreak offered anything that would provide more than a limited defence against simple targets, yet despite the limitations of the proposed systems we see the destabilising effects the deployment of such systems has.

Hopefully strategic missile defence will remain in its embryonic state.

WRT to the ATL, presumably this is a device for targeting mortar rounds and RPGs and the like?

The ATL is a testbed designed for engaging ground targets using an airborne laser, systems for targeting RPG's and mortars in flight from the ground using conventional technologies are currently avaliable (such as CRAM), with systems like the Tactical High Energy Laser acting as testbeds.

*danger excitable swearing!*
[youtube]IqTyafBaDYM[/youtube]