The Silent Hunter is an
anti-drone laser weapon developed in
China by
Poly Technologies
The Poly Technologies (), sometimes abbreviated as PolyTech, a subsidiary of China Poly Group Corporation, is a trade company with headquarters in Beijing, China. The company deals with missiles and other military products. The company was fou ...
. It is an improved version of the 30-kilowatt Low-Altitude Laser Defending System (LASS) and is available in both fixed and mobile versions.
Specifications
The Silent Hunter uses an electrically powered fiber optic laser and according to one Poly official, has a maximum power that is between 30 and 100 kilowatts and a maximum range of four kilometers.
Although it is primarily designed to search, track, and destroy low-flying drones, it is powerful enough to "ablate" or penetrate five 2 millimeter steel plates at a range of 800 meters or a single 5 millimeter steel plate at 1000 meters.
The sheer bulk of the Silent Hunter prevents its use on an aerial platform.
Operational history
The Silent Hunter has been used by Saudi Arabia to guard against
Houthi
The Houthi movement (; ar, ٱلْحُوثِيُّون ''al-Ḥūthīyūn'' ), officially called Ansar Allah (' ''Partisans of God'' or ''Supporters of God'') and colloquially simply Houthis, is an Islamist political and armed movement that ...
drones and missiles. So far, eight systems have been spotted and are used in conjunction with truck mounted 3D TWA radar optimized for detecting low flying drones.
In November 2022, a variant of Silent Hunter in service with the
Air Force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...
was unveiled at the Zhuhai Airshow. It can operate alone or be used as a part of a network.
During the World Defense Show in Riyadh the February 05, 2024, Poly Technologies announced the first hard-kill engagement of a one-way attack drone.
International exhibition
The Silent Hunter was first unveiled at the 2017 IDEX show in Abu Dhabi. It was again showcased at the International Exhibition of Weapons Systems and Military Equipment (KADEX) in
Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the north and west, China to the east, Kyrgyzstan to the southeast, Uzbeki ...
in 2018.
A variant of Silent Hunter in service with the
Air Force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...
debutted at Zhuhai Airshow 2022.
Operators
;
*
People's Liberation Army Air Force
The People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF; ), also known as the Chinese Air Force (中国空军) or the People's Air Force (人民空军), is an aerial service branch of the People's Liberation Army, the regular armed forces of the Peo ...
– Unknown number in inventory.
;
*
Royal Saudi Air Defense
The Saudi Arabian Air Defense Forces or officially Royal Saudi Air Defense Forces (RSADF) ( ar, قُوَّات الدِفَاع الجوّي المَلكِيَّ السُّعُودِي) is the aerial defense service branch of the Saudi Arabian A ...
– At least eight units.
See also
*
ZKZM-500, a handheld laser weapon designed by the PRC.
References
{{Reflist
Directed-energy weapons
Military lasers
Weapons of the People's Republic of China