Hi-tech laser, microwave weapons on Indian Navy's wishlist

They may have achieved only 35-40% indigenisation in weapons and sensors on their warships so far, but that hasn’t kept the Indian Navy from fancying a future with weapons right out of the Star Wars films.

A senior navy officer has told Hindustan Times that the force plans to develop and deploy high-energy lasers and high-power microwave weapons to reshape the future of combat.

Lasers and microwaves are directed-energy weapons that discharge concentrated energy beams to destroy targets with minimum collateral damage. While laser weapons onboard warships would enable them to blast incoming targets like missiles and rockets at the speed of light, microwave-based weapons can destroy the enemy’s electronic equipment and communication network through an electromagnetic explosion.

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