Hacker News Reader

Comment by ourmandave | Hacker News Reader

The spec on this piece of propaganda is the main battery is all missile systems. And the secondary is 5" guns, lasers, and a railgun.

The Navy stopped trying to install railguns back in 2021 but never stopped development.

I assume the lasers are future tech that sound cool, except this thing will be cancelled right after the next admin renames Dept of War back to DoD.

View on HN

> right after the next admin renames Dept of War back to DoD

It's never actually been renamed. They just changed the stationery and website: https://www.usa.gov/agencies/u-s-department-of-defense.

Just like how Trump called in workers to put his name on the Kennedy Center building. Changing the name requires an act of Congress: https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/20/76i

Wat?! But I've already cut off the tags on my new Dept of War swag and apparel!

At least I have the new updated globe with the renamed Gulf of America. They promised to send overlay stickers once Greenland and Canada become US states.

Which is why I am ticked off every time someone at NPR calls it the Department of War.

I refuse to use this name. The historic Department is literally the US Army. The DoD is one echelon higher. It's simply retarded.

Lasers might be really useful if a ship is being attacked by a swarm of drones. (The part about hitting those drones may be future, though...)

What's special about a drone that a laser would be better for than existing close-in weapon systems?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Close-in_weapon_system

The problem with drones is that there can be a lot of them, and they can be maneuvering. They can overwhelm conventional defenses. Lasers let you at least not run out of ammunition.

But how does a laser improve on that? They're slow and have to stay on a target for a while to damage it. Close-in defenses fire thousands of rounds per second and every single one of those rounds can take a drone out instantly if it hits.

The same blog has an excellent series on lasers as a naval weapon:

part 1: https://www.navalgazing.net/Lasers-at-Sea-Part-1

NB/ Lasers do not cope well with smoke, fog or rain.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com