Defense Blog reports,

The Ukrainian Navy’s press service recently released footage showcasing the combat effectiveness of their air defense units, marking the confirmed debut of a new Counter-Unmanned Air System (UAS) weapon system developed by L3Harris for Ukraine.

The video captured the moment when a Russian kamikaze drone, identified as the Shahed-136, was successfully shot down by an Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) laser-guided rocket launched from the Vampire weapon system.

If you have been following my blog, you know I like this system and have been advocating for Coast Guard use of the APKWS since at least 2017.

• It is probably less maintenance intensive than a .50 caliber machine gun.
• It has a very small footprint and light weight.
• Because it is a precision weapon, it minimizes the probability of collateral damage.
• It is a proven counter Unmanned Air System.
• It can employ a variety of warheads for different purposes including air burst with the M429 proximity fuse. It has even been tested successfully against cruise missiles.
• It is effective against small, fast, highly maneuverable surface threats.
• It has an effective range greater than that of our M38 gun mounts and a similar effective range to that of the 57mm and 76m guns.
• While I would not count on its ability to stop medium to large ships, it can inflict damage at effective ranges beyond that of most weapons a terrorist organization might equip a vessel with.  It is likely to be a lot more effective against small ships than the Mk38.
• And it is cheap. 

Without much additional effort, it could make Coast Guard assets much more capable in the Ports, Waterways & Coastal Security and Defense Readiness missions.