Laser-Humvee Will Hunt IEDs

Boeing has developed a laser-equipped Humvee designed to disarm IEDs, CNET's military tech blog reports. The weapon system, known as the “Laser Avenger,” consists of a 1-kilowatt laser added to an anti-aircraft Humvee-mounted missile turret, and can neutralize a bomb by shooting the super-hot laser into it until it combusts internally, “popping” in a low-level detonation.

The company kicked off marketing efforts for the “Laser Avenger” recently by popping five IED-like targets on a test range. Boeing says the system reflect "the company's ability to rapidly respond to warfighters' needs," and while the unit provides safe and fast disposal of IED’s, critics say the real difficulty with such improvised bombs is finding them. (More Humvees stories.)