The French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle tested a laser anti-drone system during the La Fayette 26 mission.
The system was tested on the ship’s flight deck between June 4 and 8, according to the French Navy’s magazine Cols Bleus, as reported by Zone Militaire.
The experiment took place while the aircraft carrier was docked in the Gulf of Oman. A joint team of specialists from the Centre for Military Aviation Expertise (CEAM) and the ground-based air defense division was involved in deploying the system.
Installing the equipment aboard the ship took about four hours. The system comprises a camera turret, a LIDAR, a laser emitter, a cooling unit and a control console.
Although Cols Bleus described this as the system’s first shipboard test, the published photo shows the HELMA-P system in use.
In June 2023, the French military first tested the laser on the deck of the Forbin frigate. At the time, France’s Ministry of the Armed Forces noted the laser’s high accuracy and effectiveness.
HELMA-P
Development of the HELMA-P (High Energy Laser for Multiple Applications – Power) system began in 2017 by CILAS. The project is being carried out under the L2AD program to develop laser weapons for countering drones.
Before its sea trials, HELMA-P successfully completed ground tests in 2020 and 2021. The system was also deployed to provide security during the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Technically, HELMA-P is a directed-energy weapon integrated with target detection and tracking systems. It is designed to neutralize small drones and other ‘asymmetric’ threats.
During operation, the laser uses a powerful beam to destroy the target’s structure within seconds.
The Charles de Gaulle is not the only aircraft carrier equipped with similar weaponry. In October 2025, the US aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush tested the LOCUST system and subsequently used it in the Gulf of Oman.
Source: Militaryni
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