The Army has set plans to integrate a high-energy laser weapon into its short-range air and missile defense arsenal by 2027, making room for a directed-energy capability alongside guided-missile interceptors in the Indirect Fire Protection Capability Increment 2 system. This objective is revealed in an Oct. 26, 2018 Army report to Congress on IFPC Inc. 2, the mobile, ground-based air and missile defense system designed to provide protection in all directions against cruise missiles, unmanned aircraft, rockets, artillery and mortar...