The U.S. Navy has installed a new laser weapon system aboard USS Dewey during dry-docking selected restricted availability work on the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer. A team of subject matter experts at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Dahlgren Division, built and tested the Optical Dazzling Interdictor Navy to help the naval surface force counter unmanned aerial vehicle threats, the service branch said Thursday.
It took the NSWC team two and a half years to complete the process of turning the system from an idea to eventually performing the installation. ODIN's installation marked the initial operational deployment of a standalone suite built to operate as a dazzler.
“The Pacific Fleet Commander identified this urgent counter-intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance need and the Chief of Naval Operations directed us to fill it as quickly as possible,” said Cmdr. David Wolfe of the Program Executive Office for Integrated Warfare Systems Directed Energy.
