Independent Working Group Report: Missile Defense, the Space Relationship, and the Twenty-First Century. »»
July 8, 2008
IWG Report 2007
Independent Working Group Report: Missile Defense, the Space Relationship, and the Twenty-First Century. »»
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Airborne Laser (ABL)
| Country: | USA |
|---|---|
| Basing: | Air |
Details
The Airborne Laser (ABL) is among the largest and most complex of the Missile Defense Agency’s high-energy laser projects. Once operational, ABL will consist of a chemical laser integrated into the fuselage of a modified Boeing 747-400F freighter aircraft. The system will be capable of eliminating ballistic missiles in their boost phase just seconds after they have been launched.
The project began in 1996 when MDA and the U.S. Air Force awarded a $1.3 billion contract to “Team ABL,” including Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and Northrop Grumman. The project is currently in the design and development phase. Upon completion, ABL will be able to detect, target, and destroy hostile missiles completely on its own, i.e. without the help of radar, satellites, or ground-based command centers. The U.S. Air Force eventually plans to deploy a fleet of seven modified Boeing 747s around the globe.
Controlled by a four-man team, each 747 will operate at altitudes of 40,000 feet or higher. Six infrared sensors positioned on the outside of the 747 (one each on the front and rear and two on each side) will give ABL the ability to scan the horizon for threats. Once a hostile missile has been detected, ABL’s three tracking lasers will illuminate the target and calculate its course and direction. The first laser will lock on to the missile and provide detailed tracking information. The second will determine the aimpoint of the target. The third will measure the amount of atmospheric disturbance between the 747 and the missile so that computers and deformable mirrors can compensate for the amount of refraction the laser beam will encounter on its way to the target.
Finally, the ABL will fire its high-energy Chemical Oxygen Iodine Laser (COIL) from a turret located in the 747’s nose. The COIL will combine common industrial chemicals (hydrogen peroxide, potassium hydroxide, chlorine gas, water) to create its lethal beam. ABL’s beam control/fire control system will maintain the strength and direction of the beam as it travels through the atmosphere. A three- to five-second burst will heat the missile’s metal skin until it cracks. Since the missile’s interior is pressurized during launch, the crack will expand rapidly into a tear and the fuel will explode, causing the missile to disintegrate over its launch site.
The ABL project is currently moving forward in two-year development “blocks.” On July 18, 2002, the prototype 747, known as YAL-1A, made its first test flight. The current phase, Block 2004, will lead up to a demonstration of ABL’s ability to intercept a short-range ballistic missile, most likely over the Pacific Ocean. Block 2006 will involve the deployment of the Block 2004 aircraft, which will be analyzed for integration with the overall Ballistic Missile Defense System and tested for emergency capability. In the Block 2008 period, the program will build a second 747 and focus its efforts on upgrades and affordability.
At present, however, the ABL program is running behind schedule. A report released by the Government Accounting Office (GAO) on April 23, 2004 found that four out of six major tests scheduled for 2003 were either deferred or delayed. The Block 2004 demonstration, which will determine whether or not ABL is capable of destroying a live target, has been pushed back to February 2005 at the earliest. The GAO report also found that ABL has exceeded its intended $11 billion budget. The program has incurred about $1 billion in overruns since 1996, and the GAO estimates that ABL will add another $1 billion in extra costs before the system is ready for testing.
The main reason for these delays and cost overruns is the problem of “jitter,” or small vibrations that occur naturally in a 747 aircraft due to turbulence or the hum of its engines. “Jitter” is typical under normal flight conditions, but these small vibrations have a detrimental effect on a laser weapons such as ABL’s COIL, which must focus a high-powered beam of light on a rapidly moving target and maintain the beam’s intensity no matter the circumstances. For this reason, the stabilization of the laser is essential, and the program cannot move forward until Team ABL perfects its beam control/fire control system, which is designed to compensate for “jitter.”
Due to the project’s increased visibility as a result of these delays and cost overruns, the ABL program has become a test of the maturity and feasibility of MDA’s other high-energy laser programs. Its success or failure will have a direct effect on the amount of future dollars spent on the research and development of additional laser weapons, such as the highly promising Space-Based Laser (SBL).
Sources
The Boeing Company.
Federation of American Scientists.
GlobalSecurity.org.
Lamberson, Donald L., Edward Duff, Don Washburn, and Courtney Holmberg. “Whither High-Energy Lasers?” Air & Space Power Journal, 1 April 2004.
Lockheed Martin Space Systems.
Missile Defense Agency.
Navrot, Miguel. “Anti-Missile Laser Program at Kirtland Faulted.” Albuquerque Journal, 24 April 2004.
Navrot, Miguel. “Anti-Missile Plane Overruns Go On.” Albuquerque Journal, 2 April 2004.
Northrop Grumman Space Technology.
Rees, Elizabeth. “‘Jitter’ A Huge Risk For Block 2004 Airborne Laser Capability, GAO Warns.” Inside the Air Force, 30 April 2004.
Selinger, Marc. “Airborne Laser’s Overruns Could Reach $2 Billion, Senator Says.” Aerospace Daily, 12 March 2004.
General Obering Says U.S. Should Welcome Missile Defense Race
Air Force Lt. Gen. General Obering said on Wednesday that the U.S. should be comfortable in welcoming a global missile defense race. Obering, head of the Missile Defense Agency, has told Senate appropriators that in the absence of such defenses, a race for offensive missiles has already exploding all over the world due to easy access to certain kinds of offensive systems.
According to Obering, the kind of layered defense the U.S. is pursuing through the Bush Administration and allies would likely deter enemies and potential enemies from building arsenals of offensive missiles.
In a hearing on the MDA’s 2009 budget request, Obering confidently told appropriators that if Washington, its NATO allies and countries like Russia could come together to develop and field missile shields around the world, hostile regimes in Tehran and Pyongyang will certainly “think twice about [fielding] offensive missiles,” as history has shown that these sorts of defensive systems are “hard to defeat.”
Obering’s report comes as Pentagon and administration officials are in talks with European allies and Warsaw attempting to come to agreement over a proposal to install roughly one dozen missile interceptors in Poland. Additionally, the U.S. has already reached a preliminary agreement with the Czech Republic to put an advanced radar suite there.
Negotiations with Polish officials halted earlier in the year when a new government took over in Warsaw and made clear that its desire for greater American military and security support before agreeing to host interceptors. More recently, U.S. officials have been optimistic about the prospects of linking a deal with Poland.
Obering told the Senate appropriators that he is hopeful that an accord can be reached “by the end of the year,” which would allow the MDA to begin the competition for the European shield work. The agency hopes to select a contractor soon enough to start work in Europe by the end of next year.
Meanwhile, Obering has reported that the Airborne Laser (ABL) effort, geared towards installing a laser weapon on board a Boeing 747 jet, is scheduled for a missile shoot-down test in mid-2009. Following this test, Obering said, agency officials will apply lessons provided by the test, during a “transition period” during which the agency will “try to figure out how to make the third and fourth planes as affordable as possible.”
With the ABL program progressing, Army Lt. Gen Kevin Campbell, chief of the Army Space and Missile Defense and Army Strategic Forces commands argues that the ground force is in talks with Air Force officials about the latter’s Advanced Hypersonic Weapon (AHW) program. These two bodies are working to integrate certain AHW technologies with the Air Force’s Prompt Global Strike program aimed at fielding a next-generation weapon capable of striking fleeting targets around the glove faster than today’s munitions. Additionally, MDA is working on doubling the size of its forthcoming SM-3 missile fleet over the next five years.
The Pentagon’s recently completed Joint Capability Mix II Study was meant to study the cocktail of missile defense weapons and sensors to handle threats that may occur in the 2015 time frame. The examination concluded that more SM-3 missiles would be needed. General Campbell has said that MDA plans to scatter the doubled SM-3 fleet across the “out years” of the future years defense strategy.
» More stories on: NATO, Testing - American
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
ABL Tests Tracking Laser
The Airborne Laser (ABL) recently passed a milestone test involving the successful tracking of a target, compensated for atmospheric turbulence and simulated the firing of a missile-killing laser. During the July 13 test at Edwards Air Force Base, the ABL identified and tracked a target on a modified KC-135 aircraft named Big Crow. The Big Crow target aicraft fired a beacon laser at the ABL aircraft, the ABL was able to measure and compensate for laser beam distortion caused by the atmosphere. The ABL then simulated the firing of a high-energy laser that would destroy the target. In the next test the ABL will use its own beacon illuminator laser, as opposed to one on the Big Crow, to measure the atmospheric distortion. Provided those tests proceed as planned and funding for the program is not cut by the Congress, a high energy "kill" laser will be installed on the ABL. The ABL's first full intercept test, currently scheduled for 2009, would destroy an in-flight missile with its laser. The House Armed Services Committee recently slashed $250 million from the ABL's budget, however, leaving only $298 million of the requested $549 million.
» July 9, 2007: ABL Completes Fire Control Loop
» More stories on: Testing - American
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
Hackett on ABL Program Progress
MDA’s Airborne Laser (ABL) is making progress and will soon provide a boost-phase defense against emerging missile threats, writes James T. Hackett in The Washington Times. The ABL consists of a high-energy laser deployed on a Boeing-747 capable of flying to trouble spots around the world. Once operational, the system will be able to destroy enemy missiles right after their launch, before they can release warheads or decoys. The ABL will add a new boost-phase capability to the U.S. missile defense system, a first line of defense. With two ABLs on station, one could be airborne 24 hours a day, neutralizing threats from North Korea, Iran, elsewhere in the Middle East, or along the China coast.
Hackett notes that the ABL has met every milestone over the past two years. In 2004, the high-energy laser was fired for the first time. In 2005, it succeeded in generating lethal power. Next year, the laser will be tested in flight. The ABL will then be prepared for its first shoot-down, which will take place in 2008. Hackett remains optimistic about the program, but warns that Washington needs to remain focused on bringing the system to fruition. The recent escalation in the conflict with Iran, he argues, makes the ABL more urgent than ever.
» More stories on: Analysis
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
ABL Completes “Passive Testing” Phase
The Airborne Laser has completed an eight-month series of flight tests and performance demonstrates, called initial “passive testing,” announced the Missile Defense Agency today. The YAL-1A aircraft, a specially configured Boeing 747, will now head to a facility in Wichita, Kansas facility for final modification prior to installation of the advanced high-power Chemical Oxygen-Iodine Laser (COIL).
Colonel John Daniels, the ABL System Program Director, commented that, “It is truly amazing how much we’ve been able to accomplish in the past eight months. We have a long way to go, but we’ve made incredible progress so far.” In Wichita the aircraft will enter a new phase of testing to demonstrate ability to detect and track targets.
As the MDA news release notes, “The ABL will be the first combat aircraft relying entirely upon a directed energy device as a weapon.”
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
ABL Flight Tests Continue
Today’s edition of the Aerospace Daily & Defense Report notes that the Airborne Laser aircraft has been test flown a total of six times to date, with the most recent test on January 19.
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
Japan Considering Laser Interceptor Cooperation
Japan, which has been ambitiously moving towards a number of missile defense programs, is also considering cooperation with the U.S. on the issue of laser missile interception, reports the Mainichi Shimbun newspaper. The U.S. has reportedly suggested such cooperation to Japan unofficially, which could include the airborne laser program.
» More stories on: High Energy Defenses, Japan
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
ABL Flight Test Continuation
Continuing December 3 flight test which was cut short, Missile Defense Agency again flight tested the Airborne Laser (ABL) aircraft, this time for flew 2 and a half hours. The shorter duration of the previous test was due to anomalous instrumentation readings, an apparent problem which was quickly solved. This longer flight was again conducted at Edwards Air Force Base.
» Air Force press release on ABL flight test of Dec. 9
» More stories on: Air
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
Airborne Laser Undergoes Flight Test
Yesterday, December 3rd, the Missile Defense Agency conducted a flight test of the Airborne laser, the first such test since December 2002. The flight took place at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
» More stories on: Air, Testing - American
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
Test Fire of Laser for ABL
The Missile Defense agency conducted its first ever demonstration test of the laser weapon which will be used on the developing Airborne Laser (ABL) program, announces Northrop Grumman.
The ground-based test, called “First Light,” took place on November 10 at Edwards Air Force Base, in California, and involved the a simultaneous firing of all six laser modules comprising the Chemical Oxygen Iodine Laser (COIL), according to the press release.
» Northrop Grumman press release
» Nov. 1: Northrop Grumman offers laser weapon to army for mortar interception
» More stories on: Air, High Energy Defenses, Testing - American
» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
Boeing Gets Additional ABL Contract
Boeing was today awarded a $500 million contract by the Department of Defense, for making improvements to the Airborne Laser. The contract comes some four days after the completion of a ground test at Edwards AFB, California, of the exhaust system for the laser.
Update: Defense News reported that the General Accounting Office issued a statement on May 19 saying the cost of the ABL program has doubled and might be projected to triple. Originally, in 1996, the price tag was set at $1 billion, but is now at $2 billion. An additional $431 to $943 million is likely needed for the program.
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» Missile system details for: Airborne Laser (ABL)
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