EVENT DOSSIER
In September 2026, the UK Ministry of Defence launched a bidding project named “Project PANOPTES” aimed at purchasing an autonomous anti-UAV laser system that can be deployed on Army vehicles. The system must be capable of withstand saturation attacks from UAVs without running out of ammunition, be compatible with NATO Category 1 UAVs (weighing no more than 150 kilograms), and be able to perform detection, tracking, and destruction tasks under single or multiple concurrent threats. The deadline for submissions in the first phase was September 23rd, with an initial budget of £5 million, funded by the UK Defence Innovation Agency. Although the British Army had previously tested on-board infrared laser systems, these were only used as technical demonstrations; this bidding process marks the official advancement of the project to the stage of purchasing operational systems.
英国国防部发起名为"Project PANOPTES"的招标，旨在采购可自主运作、能抵御无人机饱和攻击且弹药不耗尽的反无人机激光系统。该项目由英国国防创新局（UKDI）代劳，首阶段投标截止时间为 9 月 23 日中午，初始预算为 500 万英镑。招标要求系统需兼容北约第一类无人机（重量不超过 150 公斤），具备检测、追踪并击败低成本威胁的能力，可安装于陆军车辆上，并能应对单个或多个同时并发威胁。此前英国陆军曾测试过车载红外激光反无人机系统，但当时仅作为技术演示；此次招标标志着向采购 operational 系统的推进。全球多国正面临无人机威胁，美国及英国海军也在寻求相关防御方案。