The US Navy's top admiral says lasers are key to keeping cheap drones from eating into warship missile magazines

As the US Navy assesses what weapons it could need in a layered defense against a range of threats, laser weapons could be a promising choice.

US Marine Corps photo by Staff Sgt. Donald Holbert

The US Navy's top admiral sees laser weapons as a strategic answer to the cost challenge of combating cheap drones.The Navy has been looking to laser and directed-energy weapons as a potentially cheaper means of neutralizing uncrewed systems, preserving limited and much more expensive interceptor missiles for higher-end threats. Laser weaponry, however, has been tricky to develop, as its effectiveness in combat depends heavily on power, cooling, and other shipboard systems.In a Wednesday op-ed for The Washington Post, Adm. Daryl Caudle, chief of naval operations, identified the cost imbalance of using multimillion-dollar interceptors to take out low-cost drones as a "defining challenge for the US Navy.""Recent conflicts have demonstrated how quickly low-cost drones, one-way attack aircraft and other relatively inexpensive weapons can pressure even advanced air and missile defenses," the admiral explained, cautioning that "a defender who fires multimillion-dollar interceptors against inexpensive drones may win the immediate engagement while losing the larger campaign of endurance.""This is why directed energy weapons — especially high-powered lasers — matter strategically," Caudle said.As the sea service battled the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen from October 2023 to May 2025, Navy warships routinely relied on missiles to eliminate drone threats. The Navy also regularly used top interceptors to combat ballistic missiles, straining stocks.Last year, Adm. James Kilby, the acting chief of naval operations at that time, told Business Insider that the way the service had been heavily leaning on its interceptors in the Middle East would not be sustainable in a high-tempo fight.During his July 2025 confirmation hearing for the CNO position, Caudle told the Senate Committee on Armed Services that the Navy faced a "learning curve" choosing the right weapons. He said that lessons from the Red Sea led the Navy to look to cheaper air-to-air weapons and electronic warfare when possible, but further consideration is necessary.