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Ukraine’s Tryzub Laser is Swatting Russian Drones 2 km Away

Wes O'Donnell
6 min readFeb 2, 2025
Tryzub anti-drone laser weapon system. Courtesy AFU via Militarnyi

Forgive me if my skepticism about battlefield lasers shines through.

After all, for nearly two decades we’ve heard promises of lasers transforming warfare — and yet, here we are in 2025, still waiting for that Star Wars moment.

Ukraine and the UK are working hard to give it to us by approaching laser warfare with similar timelines and philosophies.

On the frontlines of Ukraine’s gritty conflict, the Tryzub laser system is reportedly operational, while the UK’s DragonFire, laden with potential, is still going through extensive testing.

Ukraine’s Tryzub Laser: Cutting Through the Fog of War

GTFO Hollywood; Ukraine’s battlefield just got a dose of directed-energy reality. As they are now famous for, Ukraine has skipped the tactical hype and gone straight to battlefield utility.

According to Colonel Vadym Sukharevskyi of Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces, the Tryzub laser weapon is already zapping low-flying drones and aircraft at distances over two kilometers.

Named after the trident symbol of Ukrainian independence, the Tryzub system claims to neutralize Russian UAVs with pinpoint precision.

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Wes O'Donnell
Wes O'Donnell

Written by Wes O'Donnell

US Army & US Air Force Veteran | Global Security Writer | Intel Forecaster | Law Student | TEDx Speaker | Pro Democracy | Pro Human | Hates Authoritarians

Responses (26)

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(Any love for my Dickens reference?)

Not bad considering you wrote a tale of two lasers…

This technological leap is impressive, not least because Ukraine has been resourcefully innovating under immense pressure. From adapting consumer-grade drones for reconnaissance to inte...

This is the story of many wars, and will no doubt be the future. In the West, the industrial defense complex as sold the idea that we're prepared based on the last war, and have consequently sold us loads of expensive but questionable eccefficy…

That picture of a shell with a hole burned through seems extremely dubious. 155mm shells apparently spin at about 200 rps. It would take one helluva laser to achieve that in less than a millisecond.

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