Northrop Grumman Awarded U.S Navy Laser Contract

Northrop Grumman announced today that it has been awarded a U.S Navy R&D contract to develop next-generation laser gun to be used in shipboard defense.

If the testing is proven, the Navy hopes to build a prototype laser weapon system tested aboard warships.

Northrop has already worked on similar laser gun projects for the Navy, helping to demo the first-ever high-energy laser fired at sea in the 2011 Maritime Laser Demonstration. It was also involved in the Laser Weapon Test demonstration that made headlines last month, and it played an integral part in the Air Force's Airborne Laser program several years ago, before the ABL program was canceled.

The challenge of this deal lies in the progress past R&D work and demonstration projects to -- as Steve Hixon, Vice President of Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems, puts it -- "help the Navy mature the weapon system for use by sailors in the real world."