Airborne Laser Completes Successful Fire Control Loop for Missile

Lt. General Henry A. “Trey” Obering, Missile Defense Agency director, announced today the successful completion of the basic steps required to complete a fire control loop (sequence of events) to engage a boosting ballistic missile for the Airborne Laser (ABL) aircraft during flight tests conducted on June 29, 2007.

The exercise included the first in-flight propagation of the Surrogate High Energy Laser (SHEL) through the nose-mounted turret of the ABL aircraft, a boost-phase missile defense system that is designed to use directed energy to destroy a ballistic missile in the boost phase of flight.

During the test, the modified Boeing 747-400 freighter first used its infrared sensors and beam control sensors to successfully find and track Big Crow, the target aircraft used for the test.

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