Battle of the Acronyms and a Blast from the Past:
The U.S. Navy/Marine Corps High Energy Laser Expeditionary (HELEX) shown in the above post has the same acronym as an old German air defense system called High Energy Laser Experimental (HELEX):
https://laserstars.org/biglasers/continuous/weapons.html states:
(Note: The following information is from a 1992 publication: Laser Weapons The Dawn of a New Military Age, by
Major General Bengt Anderberg, (Swedish Army) and Dr. Myron L. Wolbarsht, (Duke University))
"One of the most interesting HEL weapon projects is the German air defense system called HELEX, which is an industrial joint project between Diehl, Gmb., in Nuremberg and MBB in Munich. HELEX stands for High Energy Laser Experimental. The project is still in its early stages, although the initial work started in the late 1970s. MBB together with Diehl have been commissioned by the Federal Ministry of Defense in Germany to implement and study this experimental system as a continuation of the work done previously In the following discussion, the term HELEX refers to the industrial conception of the final weapon to be delivered to combat units if the experiments are successful. The project is interesting, not only because a comparatively large amount of information has been made public so far, but also because it tries to meet a precise military requirement. Since this is not only a research program but also a very extensive development program aimed at producing a well-defined laser weapon for a future battlefield, it will be described in detail. The idealized conceptualization. is given in Fig. 5.1...
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FIGURE 5.1. High-energy CO2 laser system. The laser energy is directed toward the target by a highly controllable large mirror, which, on its scaffolding, can go over buildings, trees, and other ground obstructions. Photograph courtesy of MBB/ Diehl.
The main component of the HELEX is a gas dynamic carbon dioxide laser which emits an average beam power of several megawatts over the specified mission time. To carry the laser and all of its accessories, the basic chassis from a German tank, Leopard 2, has been suggested. The supply tanks for gas, water, etc. are used for the laser fuel, while the laser itself and its coolant water are carried in the chassis...
The optics of the HELEX Must cope with the difficult task of focusing enough laser energy on the target to destroy it in the air or cause it to crash. This has to be done on the battlefield even when the atmospheric conditions are unfavorable and at a combat range of at least five to ten kilometers if the HELEX is to be cost effective within the air defense concept...
The effective range will be dependent on atmospheric conditions. Under very favorable conditions, the range against aircraft, helicopters, and missiles would be up to 6 miles; this would be reduced to 3 to 4 miles in the normally heavily polluted atmosphere over a battlefield...
Many problems still must be solved before it is even possible to decide if the HELEX concept is a valid one. To date, tests have only been done in the laboratory The scaled-down experimental weapon paid for by the German Ministry of Defense will not be available until 1993 or 1994. If this weapon is a success, and if it is possible to solve all of the very difficult problems, the development of a final air defense high-energy laser weapon based on the HELEX concept may start in the mid-nineties and should be completed about ten years later. This means that theoretically such a weapon could be produced and handed over to the combat units at the beginning of 2005. Due to the technological difficulties involved in this concept, even such a distant delivery date may be overly optimistic.
Other countries have begun developmental work on possible laser weapons along similar lines. In France, several companies together with the French National Aerospace Research Agency (ONERA) are working on a HELEX-like experimental HEL weapon. There have also been some reports on a possible collaboration between France and Germany. In the United States, a similar idea is currently under investigation in the JAGUAR project."
