The Pentagon believes recent breakthroughs in directed-energy technology may augur well for a new speed-of-light missile defense program before the end of the decade, a potential game-changing capability that could arm unmanned aerial vehicles with compact lasers powerful enough to destroy enemy ballistic missiles early in flight. On Jan. 19, Missile Defense Agency director Vice Adm. James Syring touted the Defense Department's new plan to resurrect the idea of a flying laser to knock down ballistic missiles during the boost-phase...
