ABL Successfully Completes Low-Power Laser Tests against an Instrumented Boosting Missile Target Published Aug. 18, 2009 By Debra Christman EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. -- The Missile Defense Agency's Airborne Laser YAL -1A prototype aircraft successfully acquired, tracked, provided atmospheric compensation and simulated the directed energy kill sequence against an instrumented boosting missile target using three onboard low-power lasers on Aug. 10. "This mission was the culmination of many years of preparation and build-up testing and was a huge success not only for the ABL CTF and 417th Flight Test Squadron but all of Team Edwards," said Lt. Col. Mike "Zulu" Contratto, 417th Flight Test Squadron commander. "Personnel from the 412th Range Squadron, 412th Operations Support Squadron, the missile launch crew on San Nicholas Island, and numerous others worked tirelessly for several weeks to finally successfully accomplish this first-ever test mission. The entire team is extremely proud to have achieved another major system knowledge point and excited to be one step closer to our historic system demonstration test later this year." The target missile was launched from San Nicolas Island, located in the Naval Air Warfare Center-Weapons Division Sea Range, off the central California coast. This marks the third successful ABL missile engagement in just over two months. The ABL previously engaged two sounding rockets with the low-power lasers - this latest test was the first time laser performance data was collected at the target missile. The Missile Alternative Range Target Instrument is similar in size and geometry to a ballistic missile, but with a section of sensors to record and measure the laser performance. Plans call for ABL to engage progressively more difficult targets in coming months, culminating with a lethal demonstration against a boosting threat-representative ballistic missile target later this year.