February 8, 2026, 9:18 pm
The U.S. Navy has acknowledged that one of its operational destroyers recently demonstrated the combat use of a shipboard laser system, successfully countering multiple unmanned aerial targets during trials at sea.
Lockheed Martin revealed that the Arleigh Burke–class destroyer USS Preble used its High-Energy Laser with Integrated Optical Dazzler and Surveillance (HELIOS) system to detect, track, and defeat four drones as part of a Navy-led counter-UAS exercise.
The test event occurred last year but became public only after being referenced in the company’s most recent financial briefing, marking one of the clearest confirmations to date of HELIOS being employed against real aerial threats in an operational maritime setting.
Lockheed Martin chief executive Jim Taiclet said, “Speaking of amazing technology, we successfully used the shipboard laser system, Lockheed Martin’s Helios, to knock an incoming UAV right out of the sky.
The Helios weapon system successfully neutralized four drone threats in a US Navy-operated counter UAS drone demonstration at sea, showcasing an opportunity to eliminate drone attacks using lasers and saving US and allied air defence missiles for more advanced threats.”
In this video, Defense Updates analyzes why HELIOS is set to be a key defensive asset for US Navy warships?
#defenseupdates #uslaserweapon #usnavy
Chapters:
0:00 TITLE
00:11 INTRODUCTION
01:40 SPONSORSHIP – NordVPN
02:14 HELIOS OVERVIEW
03:42 HELIOS INTEGRATION
05:04 OPERATIONAL PREMISE
07:38 ANALYSIS
Sponsorship:
✴️ https://nordvpn.com/DEFENSE
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