The AN/PEQ-1 also known as a Special Operations Forces Laser Acquisition Marker (SOFLAM or SOF-LAM) or the Ground Laser Target Designator (GLTD) is a

U.S. military The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...

laser designator A laser designator is a laser light source which is used to designate a target. Laser designators provide targeting for laser-guided bombs, missiles, or precision artillery munitions, such as the Paveway series of bombs, AGM-114 Hellfire, or ...

designed for use by

special operations forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

(SOF), including Combat Control Teams (CCT), Joint Terminal Attack Controllers (JTAC), and

Tactical Air Control Parties The Tactical Air Control Party, commonly abbreviated TACP, is a small team of military personnel who provide coordination between aircraft and ground forces when providing close air support. Australia Australian TACPs are provided by the RAAF ...

(TACP), under rugged field conditions. Using the SOFLAM, soldiers can mark targets for

close air support In military tactics, close air support (CAS) is defined as air action such as air strikes by fixed or rotary-winged aircraft against hostile targets near friendly forces and require detailed integration of each air mission with fire and moveme ...

and

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during siege ...

; in combination with GPS systems it can also generate coordinates for

precision guided munitions A precision-guided munition (PGM, smart weapon, smart munition, smart bomb) is a guided munition intended to precisely hit a specific target, to minimize collateral damage and increase lethality against intended targets. During the First Gul ...

. With the SOFLAM and other target designators, support fires can be called in extremely close to friendly forces while avoiding

friendly fire In military terminology, friendly fire or fratricide is an attack by belligerent or neutral forces on friendly troops while attempting to attack enemy/hostile targets. Examples include misidentifying the target as hostile, cross-fire while eng ...

History

The AN/PEQ-1 was first used in combat in the

War in Afghanistan War in Afghanistan, Afghan war, or Afghan civil war may refer to: *Conquest of Afghanistan by Alexander the Great (330 BC – 327 BC) *Muslim conquests of Afghanistan (637–709) *Conquest of Afghanistan by the Mongol Empire (13th century), see als ...

, then later in the

Iraq War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Iraq War {{Nobold, {{lang, ar, حرب العراق (Arabic) {{Nobold, {{lang, ku, شەڕی عێراق (Kurdish languages, Kurdish) , partof = the Iraq conflict (2003–present), I ...

. Close air support called in via SOFLAM by SOF like the "Horse Soldiers" from 5th Special Forces ODAs, embedded

CIA The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian intelligence agency, foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gat ...

officers, and other forces, contributed heavily to US and allied victories during the

invasion of Afghanistan In late 2001, the United States and its close allies invaded Afghanistan and toppled the Taliban government. The invasion's aims were to dismantle al-Qaeda, which had executed the September 11 attacks, and to deny it a safe base of operations ...

. It was used during the during the capture of Mazar-i-Sharif, the capture of

Bagram Airfield Bagram Airfield-BAF, also known as Bagram Air Base , is located southeast of Charikar in the Parwan Province of Afghanistan. It is under the Afghan Ministry of Defense. Sitting on the site of the ancient Bagram at an elevation of above sea leve ...

, and the

Fall of Kandahar The Fall of Kandahar took place in 2001 during the War in Afghanistan. After the fall of Mazar-i-Sharif, Kabul and Herat, Kandahar was the last major city under Taliban control. Kandahar was where the Taliban movement had originated and where it ...

, among many other engagements. Some complaints were made about its weight and power consumption which necessitated bringing multiple replacement batteries. In its earlier configurations, the AN/PEQ-1 did not have a

laser rangefinder A laser rangefinder, also known as a laser telemeter, is a rangefinder that uses a laser beam to determine the distance to an object. The most common form of laser rangefinder operates on the time of flight principle by sending a laser pulse in ...

nor could it interface directly with GPS devices. Both the laser rangefinder and GPS interface capabilities were added with later versions.

References

External links

Night Warrior HandbookArchived

Specifications sheet
(Archive)

{{DEFAULTSORT:AN PEQ-1 SOFLAM Special Operations Forces of the United States Military electronics of the United States Laser aiming modules