German defense contractors Rheinmetall and MBDA Deutschland plan to establish a joint venture focused on high-energy laser weapons, formalizing a cooperation that has been running since 2019 and has already produced a shipborne demonstrator tested at sea. The new company is expected to be set up in the first quarter of 2026 as a German limited liability company (GmbH) and will initially concentrate on naval laser systems.
Built on German Navy trials
The move follows a development and trial campaign that Rheinmetall and MBDA say has brought their German naval laser concept close to “market readiness.” In late 2025, the partners reported that a containerized laser demonstrator completed a one-year trial phase aboard the German Navy frigate Sachsen, logging more than 100 firing tests under operational conditions.
After the sea phase, the demonstrator was transferred to the Bundeswehr’s Laser Competence Centre at WTD 91 in Meppen for further testing and evaluation.
Rheinmetall has pointed to 2029 as a plausible in-service horizon for a fully operational system, depending on continued development and qualification. The companies frame the capability as an additional layer in ship self-defense, complementing guns and missiles rather than replacing them, with a particular emphasis on countering drones and other close-range threats.
Under the planned division of labor, MBDA contributes target detection, tracking, and interfaces to command-and-control and combat management systems, while Rheinmetall provides key elements, including the laser source, aiming, and mechanical and electrical integration. The joint venture is intended to shorten the path from demonstrator to producible system by consolidating development and industrialization under one roof.
Europe’s directed energy push is accelerating
The Rheinmetall-MBDA joint venture fits into a broader European shift toward laser and directed-energy solutions across both naval and airborne domains.
In the United Kingdom, the Royal Navy is moving toward operational deployment of the DragonFire high-energy laser system from 2027, following recent trials that demonstrated its ability to engage fast-moving drones at very low per-shot cost compared with missile interceptors.
Laser-based self-protection is also gaining traction in the air domain. The UK has conducted trials of laser systems designed to defeat infrared-guided missiles, with plans to integrate such capabilities on Royal Air Force aircraft.
Germany, meanwhile, is upgrading its Luftwaffe A400M transport fleet with directed infrared countermeasure systems to improve survivability against shoulder-fired threats (MANPADS).
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