The U.S. Air Force’s plans to equip the AC-130J Ghostrider with an operational airborne laser directed energy weapon have been officially canceled. The ambitious Airborne High Energy Laser (AHEL) program faced significant technical challenges that led to delays beyond the feasible integration and flight test window, according to Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC). This decision marks the end of an initiative that aimed to make the AC-130J the first in the U.S. military to deploy an aerial laser directed weapon system.
Lockheed Martin, contracted in 2019 to provide the AHEL’s laser source and oversee its integration, was part of an effort that envisioned the laser system enhancing the AC-130J’s capabilities, especially in low-intensity counter-insurgency operations. Despite achieving “significant end-to-end high power operation” in open-air ground tests, the project could not progress to airborne testing phases as scheduled. Initially planned for Fiscal Year 2021, the flight tests were postponed to January 2024 before being ultimately canceled.
This development coincides with broader reassessments of the AC-130J’s armament and capabilities, reflecting a strategic pivot from counter-insurgency to preparing for high-end conflicts. Among the proposed changes is the removal of the 105mm howitzer, historically a staple of the gunship’s arsenal. The Pentagon’s 2025 Fiscal Year budget request, which lacks funding for the AHEL, also suggests a move towards enhancing the AC-130J’s precision-guided munitions capabilities and adding new technologies like the active electronically-scanned array (AESA) radar.
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