A Casualty-free Attack with High-power Microwaves

The Air Force has tasked Lockheed Martin to come up with requirements for a Non-Kinetic Counter Electronics capability, an aerial-based, high-powered microwave weapon system to take out enemy electronic systems without risking human casualties. “This type of weapon is completely non-lethal, so we can take out specific electronic targets deep within an enemy’s infrastructure without concern for human collateral damage,” said Tom Remenick, Lockheed’s advanced programs manager in Orlando, Fla., in the company’s release. Lockheed will deliver an NKCE operations concept, along with a mission planning strategy, to the Air Force in the first quarter of 2011. Lockheed said NKCE would require an aerial delivery platform and would be able to engage multiple targets per mission. The weapon would be aimed at buildings or other structures containing identified electronic equipment to quickly render it useless. Boeing and Raytheon have also won NKCE work.