The Department of War on July 9 awarded two Other Transaction Authority (OTA) agreements to nLIGHT Defense and Lockheed Martin Aculight, with a combined initial value of $86 million and a total program ceiling of $847 million, to develop high-energy laser weapons capable of defeating drone swarms and cruise missiles.
The agreements fall under the Joint Laser Weapon System (JLWS) program, managed by the Scaled Directed Energy (SCADE) Critical Technology Area within the Office of the Under Secretary of War for Research and Engineering. Initial containerized prototypes will carry 150 kilowatts of output power, with the Department planning to scale future versions beyond 500 kilowatts to defeat more advanced cruise missile threats from ground and naval platforms.
Using OTAs, a rapid acquisition vehicle that bypasses the traditional procurement process, the Pentagon is addressing a long-standing challenge in U.S. directed energy development: moving systems from demonstrations into field-ready, production-scale hardware.
“These prototype systems offer critical operational advantages over traditional kinetic systems, including speed-of-light engagement, exceptionally deep magazines and significantly lower cost-per-intercept, attributes essential for countering high-volume threats,” the Department stated in the announcement.
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth told lawmakers in May 2026 that the Iran War had cost $29 billion, with a significant portion spent replacing kinetic interceptors used against Iranian Shahed drones. AeroVironment CEO Wahid Nawabi told CBS News in March 2026 that high-energy laser systems cost approximately $3 per shot to fire.
Undersecretary of Defense for Research and Engineering Emil Michael told the Senate Armed Services Committee’s Emerging Threats and Capabilities Subcommittee in May 2026 that the Department was targeting a battle-ready laser demonstration by 2028.
JLWS is also linked to the Trump administration’s Golden Dome for America domestic missile defense architecture, Aviation Week reported.
