Cost Could Scuttle Airborne Laser

Published: Apr 22, 2006
Source: www.military.com



If the Airborne Laser proves to be a technical success but too expensive to operate, then the Pentagon would abandon it, the military's top missile defense official has claimed in several appearances before Congress this year and in conversations with reporters.

The comments by Air Force Lt. Gen. Trey Obering, the Missile Defense Agency director, come at a time when the Government Accountability Office is again raising questions about the ABL program, a multibillion-dollar effort to shoot down enemy ballistic missiles with a directed-energy laser aboard a Boeing 747. In a recent report, GAO said the program could experience a cost overrun of between $43.8 million and $231.7 million under the current contract with prime contractor Boeing.

Now well into its ninth year of development, the ABL program is focused on getting to a live test against a target missile planned for late 2008. Using a high-powered chemical laser placed on a 747-400 aircraft, the ABL is being designed to destroy ballistic missiles during their early boost phase of flight. Following a series of successful ground tests of the laser last year, Boeing will spend the next two years placing the device in the aircraft. The laser is composed of six modules, each the size of a large sport utility vehicle.

But even if the program achieves its technical goals, it may end up costing too much money to operate, according to the MDA director.continue..