2. Defense and DEW Programs
This chapter examines the United Kingdom's directed energy weapons (DEW) programs, which represent the most advanced laser DEW capability in Europe. The DragonFire laser system, led by MBDA UK with a 316 million pound contract, targets 50 to 100 kW output power with Royal Navy deployment on Type 45 destroyers by 2027. The RFDEW (Radio Frequency Directed Energy Weapon) system provides a complementary radio-frequency capability for counter-electronics missions. Both systems are conventional directed energy weapons — not plasma orb weapons — and are managed by Dstl (Defence Science and Technology Laboratory) through Team Hersa.
2.1 DragonFire: The UK's Flagship Laser DEW Program
DragonFire is the UK's flagship laser directed energy weapon system, developed by a consortium led by MBDA UK with Leonardo UK and QinetiQ as partners. The system targets an output power of 50 to 100 kW, placing it in the same class as the most advanced operational laser DEW systems in the United States and Israel. In 2024, MBDA UK was awarded a 316 million pound contract to deliver operational DragonFire systems to the Royal Navy, with deployment on Type 45 destroyers targeted for 2027.
DragonFire's development consortium represents the UK's premier defense industrial base for directed energy weapons:
- MBDA UK (est. 2001): Leads the DragonFire consortium, serving as prime contractor. MBDA UK is the UK subsidiary of the European missile manufacturer MBDA and brings systems integration expertise to the program.
- Leonardo UK (est. 1990): Builds the beam director with millimetric accuracy tracking. Leonardo's expertise in electro-optical systems and beam control is essential to DragonFire's precision targeting capability.
- QinetiQ (est. 2001): Provides the laser source using coherent beam-combining technology. QinetiQ's laser expertise derives from decades of UK defense research, including work at the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA).
- BAE Systems (est. 1999): Supplies components for DragonFire and conducts complementary DEW research including photonic-driven HPM technology.
Key relationships:
- Dstl manages DragonFire (2017)
- MBDA UK leads DragonFire (2017)
- DragonFire deployed on Type 45 Destroyer (2017)
- Royal Navy receives DragonFire (2017)
- MBDA UK delivers to Royal Navy (2001)
2.2 RFDEW: Radio Frequency Directed Energy Weapon
RFDEW (Radio Frequency Directed Energy Weapon, est. 2023) is a UK system that uses radio waves to disable electronics and drone swarms. The system is effective to approximately 1 kilometer and reportedly costs about 10 pence per shot — a fraction of the cost of conventional interceptor munitions. RFDEW represents the UK's entry into the radio-frequency DEW domain, complementing the laser capability of DragonFire with a counter-electronics capability.
RFDEW is developed under the Novel Weapons Programme and managed by Dstl. The system's low cost per shot makes it particularly attractive for countering drone swarms, where the cost asymmetry between defensive munitions and attacking drones is a significant tactical challenge.
Key relationships:
- Dstl manages RFDEW (2023)
- Novel Weapons Programme developed RFDEW (2023)
2.3 Dstl and Team Hersa: DEW Management Framework
Dstl (Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, est. 2001) is the UK's defense research organization, managing DEW programs through Team Hersa — the UK Ministry of Defence's integrated DEW delivery team established in 2020. Team Hersa coordinates the development, procurement, and deployment of directed energy weapons across the UK armed forces, bringing together Dstl, DE&S (Defence Equipment and Support), and industry partners.
With 8 documented connections, Dstl is the third most connected entity in the UK's plasma physics network, serving as the institutional bridge between government funding, defense industry development, and military deployment of DEW systems.
Key relationships:
- UK Government funds Dstl (2001)
- Dstl manages DragonFire (2017)
- Dstl manages RFDEW (2023)
- Dstl manages Novel Weapons Programme (2015)
- Dstl part of Team Hersa (2020)
- DE&S part of Team Hersa (2020)
2.4 The Novel Weapons Programme
The Novel Weapons Programme (est. 2015) is the UK Ministry of Defence's funding and development program for directed energy weapons and other non-conventional weapons technologies. The programme is funded by the UK Government and managed by Dstl, serving as the institutional framework within which DragonFire, RFDEW, and other DEW initiatives are developed.
The UK Government has committed significant funding to DEW development, with approximately 1 billion pounds in Strategic Defence Review (SDR) investment backing directed energy weapons. This investment reflects the UK's assessment that DEW systems will be critical to future air defense, counter-drone operations, and electronic warfare.
2.5 No Plasma Orb Weapons Development
A central question of this investigation is whether the UK's plasma physics research — particularly the fusion programs at UKAEA and Tokamak Energy — and its DEW programs — particularly DragonFire and RFDEW — have any connection to plasma orb weapons development. The evidence is clear: they do not.
DragonFire is a conventional high-energy laser weapon. RFDEW is a conventional radio-frequency weapon. Both systems use electromagnetic radiation (optical and radio-frequency, respectively) as their weapons mechanism, not plasma. While both systems may produce plasma as an incidental byproduct of their interaction with targets — laser-target interactions can create surface plasmas, and RF systems can ionize air at high power densities — the plasma is not the weapon. The weapons effects are thermal (DragonFire) and electromagnetic (RFDEW).
The UK's fusion research at UKAEA (STEP, MAST-U) and Tokamak Energy (FRC/stellarator, DARPA PUMP) is civilian energy research. The AWE Orion laser is used for nuclear weapons stewardship, not plasma weapons. There is no evidence of any UK program to develop compact toroid weapons, plasma orb weapons, or directed plasma weapons.
2.6 Defense Industrial Base for DEW
The UK's defense industrial base for directed energy weapons is concentrated in four primary companies, all participating in the DragonFire consortium or complementary DEW programs:
- MBDA UK: Prime contractor for DragonFire, systems integration, missile systems expertise.
- Leonardo UK: Beam director, electro-optical systems, targeting and tracking.
- QinetiQ: Laser source technology, coherent beam combining, defense research heritage.
- BAE Systems: Component supply, complementary HPM research, naval platform integration.
This industrial base is focused on conventional DEW technologies — lasers and radio-frequency systems — and has no documented involvement in plasma weapons development. The companies' expertise in electro-optics, beam control, and high-power electronics is directly applicable to conventional DEW but does not extend to the plasma confinement, compact toroid formation, or directed plasma technologies that would be required for plasma orb weapons.