Anti-piracy with laser cannons

In the near future laser lasers will be mounted on ships and boats to counter the attack of pirates.

The laser cannon emits a blue light up to 100 cm in diameter to blur
pirate eyes. ( Photo: Telegraph )

Engineers at BAE Systems, a defense equipment maker in the UK, are working on a laser beam to dazzle the pirates as they climb to sea-lanes, the Telegraph reported. .

When the pirate is detected remotely, the user directs the barrel toward the target and shoots a blue light beam about 100 cm in diameter. The intensity of the light beam is strong enough to make the attacker dazzling. Light beam works both day and night.

Guns can dazzle the target at a distance of nearly 2 km, but not cause casualties. Due to the dazzle, the pirates will not be able to orient, observe and shoot accurately.

The BEA System has decided to study laser cannons in the context of increasing seizure of merchant shipping at sea over the past few years, particularly in the Somali seas.

French marines arrested pirates in the Gulf of Aden on January 4, 2009. (Photo: AP )

Laser cannons have been tested several times in an area in England. It can be combined with high-frequency radar - devices capable of detecting high-speed vessels or boats commonly used by Somali pirates.

The intensity of the laser beam is not large enough to cause blindness. This is necessary in case the user mistook the normal ship with pirate ships.

'The laser can be a warning signal to pirates. In fact, pirates only really captured the merchant ship due to the unexpected factor. If a commercial ship shoots a laser beam from afar, they will understand that the target has detected it and will accelerate or fire it. As a result, their ability to abandon their goals will be very high , "said Brian Hore, head of laser cannon design.