Army Space and Missile Defense
Command/Army Forces Strategic Command revealed its High Energy Laser
 Technology Demonstrator ( HEL TD) with the recently completed laser beam control 
system integrated on a tactical truck earlier this week.
The HEL TD system is being prepared for shipment to the Army managed High Energy Laser System Test Facility (HELSTF) on White Sands Missile Range, N.M., for initial 
low power testing, pointing, and tracking experiments later this year.

Later, a high energy solid state laser will be used with the HEL TD to
 put a laser beam on a variety of targets and destroy them.


Boeing [BA] integrated the laser on an Oshkosh [OSK] tactical truck in Huntsville, Ala. 


The HEL TD program 
objective is to demonstrate in a relevant operational environment that a
 mobile solid state laser (SSL) weapon system can provide an effective
 mission capability to counter rocket, artillery, and mortar (C-RAM) 
projectiles.


“HEL TD is a major step in providing our warfighters a new game changing
 counter rocket, artillery and mortar (CRAM) capability,” said 
Michael Lavan, director, Emerging Technologies Directorate, 
USASMDC/ARSTRAT.

“HEL TD is one of the three major elements in the Army’s high energy
 laser technology feasibility program,” Lavan said. “The second
 element is the Solid State Laser Testbed Experiment (SSLTE) that is not 
mobile, but has a weapon power solid state laser, which will begin 
functional tests in 2012.
The third element of the technology
 feasibility program is the continuing series of laser performance and
 effects tests to support the Army’s assessment of high energy laser
 technologies for C-RAM and other mission applications, he said.


The HEL TD and the SSLTE will provide an unprecedented ability to 
conduct this continuing series of laser performance and effects tests.
Funding and technology support for the Army’s high energy laser program 
elements has been provided by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of
 the Army for Acquisition, Logistics and Technology and the High Energy
Laser Joint Technology Office.