# Topics > Military AI and robotics > Directed-energy weapon, laser weapons >  High-energy laser (HEL) effectors, Rheinmetall AG, Dusseldorf, Germany

## Airicist

Developer - Rheinmetall AG

HEL on wheels

The high-energy laser: Weapon of the future already a reality at Rheinmetall

Even a Boxer fights with a “lightsaber”

It looks so easy when our heroes from the sci-fi movies swing their lightsabers through the air to defeat their enemies with a humming beam of light, or pulverize entire spaceships on high-speed chases by deploying a few salvos of high-density light energy. In reality, laser weapon technology is far from straightforward.

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## Airicist

Article "Rheinmetall Conducts Sea Trials of a Naval Laser Gun"
While these engagements were passive and laser was not fired at sea, the HEL effector was tested separately, against stationary targets on land

February 19, 2016

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## Airicist

HEL - Rheinmetall’s high-energy laser effectors (Rheinmetall)

Published on Jul 7, 2016




> The Rheinmetall High Energy Laser Gun is a 30kW laser weapon technology demonstrator in a modular concept. A major advantage of HEL effectors is their outstanding flexibility with regards to escalation and de-escalation. The output power of the High Energy Laser Gun is eminently scalable. When fired at optics for aircraft, UAVs, weapons or energy sources, for example, the HEL effector is able to neutralize entire weapon systems without destroying them. Efficient protection against a large spectrum of modern air threats is achieved by increasing the laser power per gun station and combining several guns.

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