Leonardo-Finmeccanica sold a total of over 250 units of laser systems (Laser Target Designator - LTD) Type 163, following an increase in orders for this product over the past two years. This is a significant growth for the company's activities in this area, which represent around 75% of the global high-energy military laser market. To date, 10 American and European customers have purchased Leonardo's high-energy portable laser designators.
Il Type 163 of Leonardo was designed based on the needs of the JTAC (Joint Terminal Attack Controller), the body of the US Armed Forces responsible for air support close to the Allied troops. Traditional laser designators had proved to be too heavy and cumbersome to be used in front-line operations, causing considerable difficulties in identifying targets in close combat. Leonardo made the Type 163 to manage this problem, making use of the experience gained in the military laser market in which size, weight and power are fundamental requirements. The system is able to identify targets and provide telemetric information in an extremely compact format, less than 2,3 kg.
Systems Type 163 have been field-tested by US Special Forces that have been using them continuously over the past two years as part of operations in Afghanistan and the Middle East. Other US Department of Defense services chose the system, including the Air Force JTACs and some departments of the US Air National Guard.
Other countries are also using Leonardo's laser designators, experimenting with the system's immediate and precise target identification capabilities.
Leonardo is a world leader in the high energy laser targeting market. The company supplies this product for the F-35 aircraft, the helicopter Apache and for pointing pods Litening by Northrop Grumman e Sniper by Lockheed Martin. This is the first application of high-energy laser technology in terrestrial systems, which exploits the company's experience in aircraft lasers where space and power are key factors.
Il Type 163 it is one third smaller than the size of competing terrestrial systems; it allows immediate use when switched on, has a continuous emission capacity and generates high-energy lasers with an extremely limited beam divergence.
