Directed-energy proponent Mark Gunzinger, of the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments, says the government needs to do a better job transitioning successful experiments into operational weapons systems. Examples of missed opportunities include CHAMP and the Boeing X-51 WaveRider, a hypersonic missile prototype. He has called on the incoming Trump administration to more quickly move directed-energy and electronic-warfare systems from the laboratory into programs of record, particularly for defending U.S. forces and bases from air and missile threats.
“The new administration needs to begin to transition new, mature technologies to acquisition programs rather than continue to fund a seemingly endless series of experiments and demonstrations,” Gunzinger tells Aviation Week.