The High Energy Laser Technology Demonstrator program is part of a U.S. Army plan to give its fighting capability an edge over adversaries and also to better protect soldiers in a battlefront environment.

Blaine Beardsley, Boeing's program manager for HEL TD, told United Press International the program had moved from design into fabrication and assembly of the hardware needed for the solid-state laser weapon.

Everything for the second phase is being fabricated and assembled, from the optics, structure, tactical truck and processors to software and sensors, Beardsley said.

This summer Boeing went through a critical design review for the weapon, which is mounted on and eventually will be launched from a Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck, a widely used tactical vehicle.

Boeing experts have been concentrating on developing a state-of-the-art solid-state laser weapon system, the latest of several laser innovations that Boeing has been developing in close coordination with the U.S. military.

"This demonstration program is making significant progress in developing a weapon system that will transform the way soldiers are protected on the battlefield," said Gary Fitzmire, vice president and program director of Boeing Missile Defense Systems' Directed Energy Systems unit.

He said the weapon's speed-of-light, ultra-precision capability will increase a soldier's ability to counter enemy attacks involving rockets, artillery or mortars.

The contract for the weapon's development was won by Boeing in 2008. It includes a plan to develop the system-engineering requirements for the overall HEL TD system and to complete the design of, then build, test and evaluate, a rugged beam control system on board the vehicle.

Beardsley explained, "The beam control system receives the laser beam from the laser device, reshapes and aligns it, and points and focuses it on the target. In parallel, the beam control system is acquiring, tracking and selecting an aimpoint on the target. The system includes mirrors, high-speed processors and high-speed optical sensors."

HEL TD is a cornerstone of the Army's high-energy laser program, and the ongoing demonstration program is geared toward a transition to a full-fledged development and acquisition of the weapon by the U.S. military.

Boeing has already developed other high-energy laser systems for battlefield applications, including the Airborne Laser, Advanced Tactical Laser, Free Electron Laser, Laser Avenger and Tactical Relay Mirror System.

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