C2I 2024 Aerospace & Defence winner: DragonFire

Category: Aerospace & Defence
Project: DragonFire
Partners: Dstl, MBDA, Leonardo, QinetiQ

This year’s winner in the Aerospace and Defence category is a genuinely groundbreaking project featuring some of the biggest names in UK defence. In gestation for close to a decade, DragonFire is a laser directed energy weapon (LDEW) system developed by MBDA, Leonardo and QinetiQ in collaboration with the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl). 

It’s claimed the system can hit a target the size of a £1 coin from a distance of 1km, with the cost of a single ‘shot’ coming in at around £10 – essentially the price of the energy used to fire the laser. This compares favourably to the cost of missiles, which can cost many thousands of pounds, and has the potential to bring substantial cost benefits to the UK military.  While the range of DragonFire is classified, it is a line-of-sight weapon and capable of engaging with any visible target.

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High levels of laser control and stability are necessary in the communications sector, but while these lasers are high quality, they are low power. The sensitivity of optics means that the challenges around precision and stability are demanding, but not as demanding as a laser weapon. The novelty of LDEW systems, combined with the high power necessary to make an effective laser weapon, posed significant safety challenges that required extremely close collaboration between the industry partners and Dstl. 

Because of the high levels of technical complexity, the DragoonFire partners could not design and develop their own systems in isolation. According to the consortium, the ability to integrate the various systems: Laser Source (QinetiQ), Beam Director (Leonardo), and Image Processing, Control and Effector Management (MBDA) demanded a unique collaborative approach.

“UK Dragonfire is a great example of how a partnership-based UK enterprise approach can be successfully applied to a major national research and technology challenge,” said Mark Hamilton, managing director Electronics UK, Leonardo. 

 “Our beam director technology is delivering ultra-precise tracking/pointing accuracy and stability, at long range, and whilst handling such high-power laser energy passing through it. We’re pleased to have successfully tested the system against a representative aerial target at varying ranges, altitudes and speeds, supporting the first UK High Energy Laser firing against aerial targets across its operational field of regard.”

The success of DragonFire to date, culminating in the high power firing against aerial targets during the Hebrides tests, has resulted in the MOD announcing a multi-million-pound programme to transition LDEW technology from the research environment to the battlefield. In April 2024, it was revealed that Royal Navy vessels could be armed with laser weapons as soon as 2027. According to former defence secretary Grant Shapps, the British Army is also exploring deployment of DragonFire.

“This type of cutting-edge weaponry has the potential to revolutionise the battlespace by reducing the reliance on expensive ammunition, while also lowering the risk of collateral damage,” said Shapps. 

“Investments with industry partners in advanced technologies like DragonFire are crucial in a highly contested world, helping us maintain the battle-winning edge and keep the nation safe.”

The DragonFire project represents a truly collaborative and innovative effort, matching expertise from the UK weapons industry with Dstl’s High Energy Laser trials and Weapon System Engineering capability. Additionally, a wide number of other industry and MOD stakeholders were involved, providing assurance, advice and approval functions. 

According to the consortium, a ‘one team’ approach was adopted at all levels. Whilst scientists and engineers were working together closely, there were fortnightly director-level meetings including representatives from MOD and all industry partners. 

Despite the high levels of commitment from all parties and a huge drive to succeed, that success was not pursued blindly or ‘at all costs’. The novel nature of the DragonFire programme and the technology involved necessitated making safety the primary concern, with significant effort from all parties to meet the highly rigorous independent safety assurance requirements. 

Using the same demanding safety process applied to current weapons but including additional hazard classes, it was possible to guarantee that DragonFire would deliver a demonstration that was safe for both operators and public alike. The outcome of that demonstration proves the UK’s LDEW capability and that there is a credible technical route towards delivering LDEW systems into the hands of the UK military. 

“This is a really innovative application of science and engineering and is the fruit of sustained investment and effort,” said Dr Nick Joad, director Defence Science and Technology (DST) at the Ministry of Defence.

“DragonFire uses cutting-edge science and technology and delivers much greater performance than other systems of a similar class. It provides a step-change in our ability to deal with high-performance and low-cost threats.”