The future is nigh: AC-130 gunships could be outfitted with laser cannons

Team Mighty
Jun 25, 2018 3:55 PM PDT
1 minute read
Air Force photo

SUMMARY

[brid video=”114037″ player=”7965″ title=”Military Insider AC130 with Lasers”]The new head of Air Force Special Operations Command has said he’s bullish on outfitting part of his fearsome AC-130 gunship fleet with lasers to blast ground tar…

The new head of Air Force Special Operations Command has said he's bullish on outfitting part of his fearsome AC-130 gunship fleet with lasers to blast ground targets — and is even considering placing such weapons on CV-22 Osprey tiltrotors for his air commandos.


Admittedly a high-energy laser cannon on an airplane as small as a C-130 Hercules (others have fit on Navy ships and 747-sized airplanes) is still in the research phase, but that hasn't kept AFSOC from pursuing the technology since 2015.

You can read more about the development of laser toting AC-130 gunships here.

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