OW5

The OW5 is a Chinese ground-based high-energy laser weapon designed to intercept low-attitude, slow-moving targets. The system was officially unveiled at the 2025 China Victory Day Parade as part of the People's Liberation Army's anti-drone air defense system, but the vehicle was spotted earlier in transit on highways in June 2025. ^{[1] [2]} The export versions of the system, including variants such as OW5-A10, OW5-A30, and OW5-A50, were promoted by the China North Industries Group Corporation (Norinco) in 2021. The variant designation denotes the laser's rated power—the OW5-A50 is rated at 50-kilowatt ^[3] The particular version unveiled in September 2025 was the OW5-A10 variant, which fires a 10-kilowatt laser and it's mounted on a Dongfeng Mengshi platform, and the OW5-A50, which is mounted on 8×8 heavy wheeled truck chassis. ^{[4] [5] [6]}

See also

• LY-1
• High Energy Laser with Integrated Optical-dazzler and Surveillance
• DragonFire (weapon)
• AN/SEQ-3 Laser Weapon System
• Iron Beam

References

1. Malyasov, Dylan (14 June 2025). "Chinese laser gun spotted on highway". Defense Blog.
2. "China tests first OW5-A50 laser air defense system to defend key areas from enemy drone swarms". armyrecognition. 24 July 2025.
3. Sato, Daisuke (20 July 2025). "China debuts new mobile drone-killing laser". Defense Blog.
4. Barker, Memphis (2 September 2025). "China is about to reveal the weapon it's been hiding from the world". The Telegraph.
5. Osborn, Kris (30 July 2025). "Can China's Truck-Mounted Counter-Drone Laser Rival the US Army?". Yahoo News.
6. Panella, Chris; Loh, Matthew (9 September 2025). "What China's big weapons flex says about how it's arming for future wars". Business Insider.