Dragon fire revealed its power. The first demonstration of the new weapon in action. Terrifying precision [WIDEO]

Declassified footage released by the British government reveals for the first time a new laser weapon – DragonFire – in action. The recording was made public by the British Ministry of Defense, and the head of the ministry, Grant Shapps, described it as “a demonstration of the power of a laser that cuts targets at the speed of light.”

The British showed off a laser weapon. Its main advantage is the cost of use

One of the ideas behind the DragonFire project was the need to create low-cost anti-drone defense. Thanks to the laser beam, there is no need to shoot much more expensive missiles at very cheap aircraft. Such weapons would be useful to Ukrainians, who claim that Russia is trying to exhaust their very expensive artillery supplies thanks to drones, which are relatively cheap.

DragonFire was announced by the British in mid-January, when they reported that they had successfully used the weapon against air targets. The weapon’s range was classified, but the ministry said it “can hit any visible target.” DragonFire’s accuracy is astonishing because – – the laser beam can hit a coin from a distance of 1000 meters. The tests were carried out in north-west Scotland. The British Army is considering whether laser weapons could be integrated into their defense system.

This revolutionary weapon can transform the battlefield by making us less dependent on expensive ammunition and reducing the side effects of firing rockets

Shapps said.

A laser beam that lasts for 10 seconds costs around £10. “This contrasts sharply with the hundreds of thousands, even millions, of dollars we spend on advanced air defense systems,” James Black, an analyst at the RAND think tank, commented in February, quoted by Newsweek.

The British are not the only ones working on laser weapons. There are other countries in the game too

Other countries are also working on laser weapons. Israel is developing the Iron Ray project. ) designed specifically for taking down unmanned vehicles. The system is to be integrated with Iron Dome, Israel’s anti-missile system. One rocket for such a system costs 50,000. dollars, the cost of sending a laser beam with a power of 100 kilowatts will therefore be much lower.

In February, the Americans announced that they had sent 50-kilowatt lasers mounted on Stryker armored vehicles to the Middle East for testing. “It’s a prototype, but we want to experiment in real conditions,” said General James Mingus, deputy chief of staff of the US Army.