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22 May 2002
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Tucson, Arizona Wednesday, 22 May 2002 A new high-tech weapon system under development at Raytheon Missile Systems could offer the local optics industry explosive economic growth. Homeland security concerns have made billions of dollars available for new optics-related products, ranging from futuristic weapons to airport luggage screening systems. The Directed Energy Weapons product line is expected to replace, with a beam of energy, the conventional missiles and projectiles now used in battle, Raytheon officials said at an Arizona Optics Industry Association luncheon Tuesday at the Arizona Inn. The year-old program employs 150 Raytheon workers, including about 50 in Tucson, said Michael W. Booen, vice president of the Directed Energy Weapons project. During the start-up period most work is being handled in-house, but as the project matures, about 75 percent of the work will be outsourced to subcontractors, offering local optics firms business opportunities, Booen said. "We're going to need a lot of optical support. We know there is a lot of talent here in Tucson," he said. "As we go forward, the opportunities will grow." "Partnering with Raytheon as a vendor or subcontractor is very important to my business," said Francis Claire of Aegis Solutions LLC, a high-tech firm. "This is an area that is going to open right up." University of Arizona researchers could partner with the Directed Energy Weapon project to benefit both parties, said Mike Proctor, director of corporate relations at the UA. Raytheon, a leader in developing and manufacturing conventional missiles and projectiles, is looking to the future with the Directed Energy Weapons. "The other weapons programs use missiles or projectiles to deliver energy to the target," said Paul Diamond, vice president of engineering at the Tucson Raytheon plant. "Most of those systems will be replaced by a beam of energy." Delivery to military customers is several years away, and non-military applications are expected to follow, Booen said. The program has two energy components: high-power microwaves and high-energy lasers. The Active Denial technology uses microwaves that penetrate one-sixty-fourth of an inch below the skin's surface - where pain receptors are located - and cause people to immediately stop whatever they are doing, said Booen. The device causes no permanent harm, and the pain stops when the person steps out of the range of the microwave beam, he said. No test subject has been able to last more than three seconds after being subject to the device, he said. The device could be used for harbor and embassy defense, for chasing enemy crowds away from downed aircraft, to protect potential terrorist targets like nuclear power plants and to control crowds, he said. Military applications will see Active Denial mounted on vehicles like Jeeps or Humvees. Booen would not disclose the effective range of the weapon but said it exceeds the range of small-arms fire. Future civilian applications could see the devices reduced in size, with police officers being armed with hand-held units. The device is non-lethal and causes no collateral damage, Booen said. The second Directed Energy Systems technology, a high-energy laser, hits a target with energy at the speed of light with ultimate precision, he said. Laser weapons would work for air defense, air-to-air combat, guarding ships and ports, and for space-based defense. Optics will play a vital role in the new weapons, and optics have grown in importance for conventional missiles. He said 95 percent of U.S. weapons used in Afghanistan featured precision guidance devices, compared with 65 percent in Kosovo and 3 percent in the Desert Storm battles. Contact Star Business reporter Alan D. Fischer at 573-4175 or at afischer@azstarnet.com .
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