Laser Energetics and CACI International to provide laser optical distracters to the U.S. government
Mercerville, NJ--Laser Energetics (pinksheets: LNGT) has entered into a strategic agreement with CACI International (Ballston, VA) to provide the Dazer Laser product line of laser optical distracters to the U.S. Department of Defense and other federal government organizations. CACI International is a large company that supplies defense and security-related hardware and software to U.S. federal clients. The U.S. government's interests in laser dazzlers is ongoing; for example, the U.S. Army has already bought laser dazzlers from another supplier, B. E. Meyers Electro-Optics (Redmond, WA).
Optical distracters are laser-based tools that temporarily impair the vision of adversaries. Over the next decade, the market for such nonlethal weapons is forecasted to grow significantly as governments worldwide work to counter asymmetric warfare threats and protect citizens. Laser Energetics partners with General Dynamics (Charlotte, NC) to make the devices.
Dazer Lasers come in handheld and weapons-mounted versions that are eye-safe for very close combat and crowd-control situations, are combat-effective at extended long ranges, and have low weight and effective power characteristics that meet and exceed current mission-capability requirements, according to Laser Energetics. Dazer Lasers are the only optical distractors in the world that can be operated both safely and effectively from 1 to 1000 m and beyond (model dependent), says the company.
"In the C4ISR [command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance] arena, there is a growing demand from combatant commanders, law-enforcement officers, and governments worldwide for nonlethal weapons capabilities," says CACI president and CEO Dan Allen. "As a result, many governments, led by the United States, are entering into nonlethal weapons research, design, and procurement, covering the full spectrum of public safety, law enforcement, crowd control, and asymmetric warfare."
CACI will provide logistics support for the products including deployment planning, installation and training, warranty management and sparing, field service representatives, and help-desk services.
John Wallace | Senior Technical Editor (1998-2022)
John Wallace was with Laser Focus World for nearly 25 years, retiring in late June 2022. He obtained a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and physics at Rutgers University and a master's in optical engineering at the University of Rochester. Before becoming an editor, John worked as an engineer at RCA, Exxon, Eastman Kodak, and GCA Corporation.