Team Hersa

Intelligence Summary: Team Hersa — UK DEW Programme Management Partnership

Node Identity: Team Hersa is the institutional partnership between the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) and Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S) that manages the UK's directed energy weapons (DEW) programmes. Established as a joint management entity, Team Hersa pairs Dstl's scientific and technical expertise with DE&S's acquisition and procurement skills, creating an integrated pathway from research to operational deployment. Within the UK intelligence graph, Team Hersa is categorized as a Program entity, reflecting its role as a programme management structure rather than a standalone organization.

Strategic Relevance: Team Hersa is strategically significant because it represents a deliberate institutional solution to the persistent defence innovation gap — the difficulty of transitioning scientific research into operational military capability. By co-locating Dstl scientists and DE&S acquisition professionals within a single management framework, Team Hersa aims to accelerate the DEW development cycle. This model proved its effectiveness in the DragonFire programme, where the deployment timeline was accelerated from 2032 to 2027 — a five-year reduction representing significant procurement reform. Team Hersa's relevance to FRC/plasma weapons technology lies in its role as the management structure through which any future plasma-based weapons concepts would be developed and procured, should the UK choose to pursue them. The ~£1 billion SDR investment this Parliament flows through Team Hersa-managed programmes.

Technical Focus / Capabilities: Team Hersa manages three primary DEW capability streams: (1) DragonFire Laser DEW — a 50 kW-class system with £316M contract for Royal Navy deployment from 2027; (2) RFDEW — radio frequency drone-swarm killer at 10p per shot, effective to 1km; (3) Novel Weapons Programme — £72.5M for laser and RF demonstrators across Navy, Army, and truck platforms. Team Hersa also engages with the Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) open call for next-generation DEW under "Making Science Fiction a Reality," seeking proposals for future capabilities. The partnership coordinates with the UK/US bilateral DEW exchange (since 2010, SECRET-level workshops) covering HEL technologies, beam control, HPM effects, atmospheric propagation, lethality, and counter-UAS applications.

Network Linkage: Team Hersa maintains 4 documented connections: is part of Dstl; is part of DE&S; Dstl is part of Team Hersa; DE&S is part of Team Hersa. Through these bidirectional links, Team Hersa connects to DragonFire, RFDEW, Novel Weapons Programme, UK Government (funder), and the Royal Navy (recipient service).