What are they preparing to fight?
A successful ground test has moved the U.S. military one big step closer to putting anti-missile lasers on its aircraft.
A ground-based laser shot down “several” missiles in flight during an April 23 test at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico, Air Force officials said. Run by the Air Force Research Laboratory, or AFRL, the test was part of the Self-Protect High Energy Laser Demonstrator, or SHiELD, a program intended to protect aircraft from incoming missiles.
https://www.defenseone.com/technology/2019/05/fighter-jets-missile-killing-lasers-take-another-step-toward-reality/156737/