Beating the odds, the U.S. Navy resurrected a high energy laser weapon for a modern exercise, underscoring the service's push to field cutting edge defenses.

The Directed Energy Systems Integration Laboratory at Naval Base Ventura County ramped up efforts to restore critical functions to the service's “one-of-a-kind” 150 kW Solid State Laser Technology Maturation SSL-TM demonstrator starting in early March 2025, according to a Navy year in review bulletin.

First developed in 2012 and installed aboard USS Portland in 2019, the SSL-TM demonstrator was designed as the successor to the 30 kW AN/SEQ-3 Laser Weapon System, known as the XN-1 LaWS.

It was built to “provide a new capability to the Fleet to address known capability gaps against asymmetric threats,” including drones and small attack boats, and to “inform future acquisition strategies, system designs integration architectures and fielding plans for laser weapon systems.”

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The demonstrator appears to have performed as advertised, delivering notable results during testing. The system successfully destroyed a drone target during at-sea testing in the Gulf of Aden in May 2020, an engagement that yielded one of the most vivid representations of a real-world laser weapon in action to date, and neutralized a small surface target during additional testing in December 2021.

After a deinstallation from Portland in fiscal year 2023, the SSL-TM demonstrator was presumably mothballed until the War Secretary’s office requested that the laser weapon “play a role” in the Pentagon’s Crimson Dragon military exercise the following September.

Crimson Dragon was described as a weeklong, multi-unit DESIL test event, bringing together 20 defense contractors to test drones, counter-drone systems and sensors “in scenarios that simulated military base defense, long-range fires and integrated [ballistic missile defense],” according to the NAVSEA bulletin.

The SSL-TM demonstrator reportedly “shot down four drone targets” during the exercise.

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While the specifics of each scenario remain unclear, the Pentagon’s own evaluation notes that a portion of Crimson Dragon focused on the sea point of departure defense venues against all-domain maritime air-and-sea threats.

That focus suggests the system may have provided air defense for a simulated port or staging area where troops and equipment embark onto ships.

Beyond these brief mentions, details about the SSL-TM demonstrator’s current status, its performance during Crimson Dragon, and future Navy plans remain sparse. NAVSEA, the War Secretary’s office, and the Office of Naval Research did not respond to requests for more information.

Yet, the broader arc is clear: the Navy is testing how best to bring high-energy lasers into realistic, scalable use, even as the range of available systems remains tight.

Critics will note the Pentagon’s history with directed energy suggests a long road from prototype to routine operation. The reality, however, is that the push for practical energy weapons continues to outpace production lines and budgets.

The Army has wrestled with its own laser programs, including four 50 kW Directed Energy Maneuver-Short Range Air Defense units that have been demilitarized, while others like AMP-HEL focus on drones along border areas.

The Marine Corps has shifted its hardware back to Boeing, and the Navy’s HELIOS system has faced its own hurdles aboard ships at sea. Still, the resurgence of the SSL-TM shows leadership, at the highest level, is willing to test and adapt.

In interviews and public statements, supporters argue this is exactly the kind of modernization President Trump championed. They point to Secretary of War Pete Hegseth’s emphasis on accelerating fielding and experimentation as essential to deterring modern threats.

The aim is to turn promising demonstrations into workable capabilities that can be deployed across fleets when the time comes.

The takeaway is simple: the Navy is not waiting for perfection to act. It is moving forward with what it has, refining tactics, and learning from each test to shape how lasers will operate in tomorrow’s battles.

This is not about flashy showpieces alone. It is about practical enhancement of warning and response times, about giving operators tools that can deny adversaries an advantage in contested seas and skies.

The SSL-TM revival reflects a broader national priority to ensure that the United States remains ahead in the evolving domain of directed energy.

The goal is clear. To deter, to defeat, and to deter again through credible, integrated laser capabilities that can be deployed when needed, where needed.

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