Airborne Laser faces uncertain future despite historic intercept test

http://www.flightglobal.com/articles/2010/02/17/338475/airborne-laser-faces-uncertain-future-despite-historic-intercept.html

 

Rinn's top customer - Secretary of Defense Robert Gates - remains opposed to making the $6 billion programme operational. In 2009 Gates cancelled the second Airborne Laser aircraft and downgraded the programme from operational prototype to testbed status.

The programme now remains in limbo, awaiting the results of future budget decisions. The Department of Defense has requested slightly less than $100 million for the ALTB in fiscal year 2011, which Rinn says is insufficient to preserve the industrial base for such high-energy lasers.