AUGUST 6, 2026
U.S. Army Nears Contract for First Permanent High-Energy Laser Weapon as Pentagon Expands Directed-Energy Programs
The U.S. Army is nearing a contract award with AeroVironment for the Enduring High Energy Laser (E-HEL), which would be the service's first laser weapon to transition into a permanent operational capability. Army acquisition chief Lt. Gen. Frank Lozano described the program in July as the Army's first program of record for a family of high-energy laser systems, citing "a lot of recent promise and capability" during testing at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The development comes as the Pentagon faces an era of low-cost drone proliferation that forces militaries to expend costly missile interceptors.
The Army's pursuit of a battlefield laser weapon has moved from laboratory testing toward a formal contract, with a source familiar with the program telling Fox News Digital that negotiations with AeroVironment are continuing and no deal has been finalized. Lt. Gen. Frank Lozano, the Army's acquisition chief, publicly described the Enduring High Energy Laser in July as the Army's first program of record for a family of high-energy laser systems.
The Army's effort is part of a broader Pentagon push across all branches. The Air Force disclosed in July that it is using the compact laser weapon system at multiple overseas locations to defend against drones. The Navy has spent years testing its High Energy Laser with Integrated Optical-Dazzler and Surveillance (HELIOS) system aboard destroyers, gradually adding directed-energy weapons to fleet operations.
The drive toward operational laser weapons has been accelerated by the rapid proliferation of inexpensive drones on battlefields in Ukraine, the Middle East, and the Red Sea. Traditional missile interceptors can cost hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars per shot, creating a cost asymmetry when used against cheap unmanned aircraft. Laser systems, by contrast, can engage targets at a cost measured primarily in electricity.