--- title: "Counter-Drone Laser Weapon Now Guarding Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Alongside SAMs" description: "Mar-a-Lago is the latest real-world deployment for the U.S. military's growing arsenal of LOCUST counter-drone lasers." date: "2026-11-02" modified: "2026-11-02" authors: - name: "Joseph Trevithick" job_title: "Deputy Editor" link: "https://www.twz.com/authors/joseph-trevithick.md" url: "https://www.twz.com/news-features/laser-weapon-now-guarding-trumps-mar-a-lago-estate" categories: - "Counter-Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (C-UAS)" - "Directed Energy" - "Land" - "Lasers" - "News & Features" - "POTUS" --- # Counter-Drone Laser Weapon Now Guarding Trump’s Mar-a-Lago Alongside SAMs ![At least one AeroVironment LOCUST laser counter-drone system is part of the array of anti-air defenses that have popped up around President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, in recent weeks.]() *Andrew Harnik/Getty Images* At least one AeroVironment LOCUST laser counter-drone system is part of the array of [anti-air defenses that have popped up]() around President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida, in recent weeks. [Versions of LOCUST]() have been seeing steadily increasing use [within the U.S. military in recent years](), including [deployments now along the border with Mexico](). Though there has been much progress in the [development of practical laser directed-energy weapons]() in recent years, the technology has [continued to face hurdles]() to more widespread adoption. The LOCUST system at Mar-a-Lago, which is mounted on a 4x4 [Joint Light Tactical Vehicle]() (JLTV), is seen in two pictures that Getty's Andrew Harnik took on October 31. When exactly the laser-directed energy weapon was deployed is unclear. *Laser Wars* [was the first to spot the system]() in one of Harnik's pictures and confirm its deployment. Harnik's main focus was a pair of [Humvee-based AN/TWQ-1 Avenger]() short-range air defense systems on a floating platform in Lake Worth Lagoon near the edge of the estate, which were first deployed there just over two weeks ago. Additional Avengers have also been positioned around Donald J. Trump International Airport, which is situated some three miles to the west. The U.S. military has also set up elements of [Counter-Unmanned Aircraft System Fly-Away Kits](), including Ku-band radar, electronic support measures (ESM), jammers, and 360-degree infrared search and track systems nearby. *TWZ* covered the presence of the Avengers and the Fly-Away Kits [in a report last Friday](). ![]() *The JLTV-based LOCUST counter-drone laser system can be seen here, at right, between two palm trees. Two Humvee-based AN/TWQ-1 Avenger short-range air defense systems are also seen, at left, on a floating platform. *Andrew Harnik/Getty Images** ![]() *A stock picture of a JLTV-based LOCUST system. *AeroVironment** This heightened security [comes amid signs]() that a new round of major hostilities with Iran [could be on the horizon](), as well as the run-up to tomorrow's mid-term elections. The [regime in Tehran has threatened Trump's life]() on [several occasions]() over the years. The President has already been [the subject of several]() domestic [assassination attempts]() and threats. “At the request of the U.S. Secret Service (USSS) and under NORAD \[the U.S.-Canadian North American Aerospace Defense Command\] and USNORTHCOM \[U.S. Northern Command\] authorities, NORAD and USNORTHCOM recently deployed ground-based air defense \[GBAD\] assets and Counter-Unmanned Aircraft System capabilities in and around Mar-a-Lago, Florida,” the commands told us in a statement last week. “These assets add a complementary layer of technology to enhance protection. Due to operational security, we are unable to provide additional details. For further detail, we refer you to the USSS.” “The U.S. Secret Service is operating in a heightened threat environment, and we continuously adapt our protective operations to incorporate cutting-edge tools, technology, and methods to safeguard our protectees,” the Secret Service also told us in a prior statement. “At the request of the U.S. Secret Service, NORAD and U.S. Northern Command are providing Counter-Unmanned Aircraft System capabilities in support of our protective operations.” The U.S. Army began recieving the JLTV-based versions of LOCUST, along with examples mounted on the smaller [4x4 Infantry Squad Vehicle]() (ISV) last year through a program called the [Army Multi-Purpose High Energy Laser]() (AMP-HEL). This followed the delivery of palletized LOCUST systems under a rapid prototyping effort called [the Palletized-High Energy Laser]() (P-HEL) in the early 2020s. The Army is [now acquiring LOCUST X3 systems]() under its Enduring-High Energy Laser (E-HEL) program. LOCUST has become something of a star more broadly within the directed energy space across the U.S. military. The U.S. Marine Corps and the U.S. Navy have also been exploring the use of [versions of LOCUST in ground-based]() and [shipboard contexts](). ![]() *A close-up look at the turret on an earlier palletized version of LOCUST acquired by the Army. *US Army** To date, all versions of LOCUST consist of a turret with the laser beam projector, as well as built-in electro-optical and infrared video cameras for target acquisition and tracking. The complete system also includes power generation and cooling components. LOCUST variants can also be cued using offboard sensors, including small-form-factor high-frequency radars and passive radio frequency signal detection systems on host vehicles or located off-platform nearby, like what the Fly-Away Kit provides. ![]() *One of the Army's ISV-mounted LOCUST systems. Note the small form factor radars on top of the cab, as well as at the rear of the vehicle. *US Army** The stated power rating for LOCUST varies from version to version, with the latest X3 being a 30-kilowatt type. Though the system is categorized as a high-energy laser, this is at the lower end of the power spectrum for weapons of this type, and it is explicitly geared toward the countering small drones mission set. Layering LOCUST in with other hard- and soft-kill counter-drone and air defense systems in a potentially high-threat area, as we are seeing now at Mar-a-Lago, makes good sense. ![]() *A promitional image showing a JLTV-mounted LOCUST X3, as well as a stand-alone configuration of the system. *AeroVironment** As mentioned, Mar-a-Lago is not the first time a LOCUST has been deployed in a real-world context. In 2022, the Army [confirmed the operational deployment]() of two of P-HEL systems to unspecified foreign locales. Earlier this year, JLTV- and ISV-based AMP-HELs have appeared along the border with Mexico. One of the systems was part of the [chain of events that led to the shutdown of airspace]() around El Paso, Texas, in February. That incident, in turn, prompted the Pentagon to craft [a new agreement with the Federal Aviation Administration]() (FAA) regarding the use of laser directed energy weapons within the United States. ![]() *A JLTV-based LOCUST system seen deployed somewhere near the border with Mexico. *US Army** As [*TWZ* has written in the past](): *"In general, laser directed energy weapons offer the promise of functionally unlimited magazine depth, as long as there is sufficient power and cooling capacity. They also present a drastically lower cost-per-intercept proposition compared to traditional anti-air interceptors. This is all advantageous for engaging drones, particularly smaller and cheaper designs that can still present very significant threats. The dangers posed by uncrewed aerial systems are only set to grow as networked swarming and automated targeting capabilities, [enabled by advances in artificial intelligence and machine learning](), become more accessible. Defenders already face real risks of just being overwhelmed by attacks involving volumes of drones."* ... *"At the same time, a laser like LOCUST can only engage a single target at once. Lower-powered lasers need to dwell on their targets for a longer period of time in order to cause significant damage by burning a hole in them, as well. This limits the number of targets a single system can engage in a given window of time."* *"In addition, the power of any laser beam drops as it propagates through the atmosphere further and further away from its source. Weather and other environmental factors like smoke and dust can also distort the beam and reduce its power. All of this only adds to the aforementioned dwell time. [Adaptive optics](), and just more power overall, can help produce useful effects at greater distances, but laser weapons continue to have short ranges, typically measured in handfuls of miles, as a general rule."* *"The Army, as well as other branches of the U.S. military, have [repeatedly acknowledged challenges in fielding]() laser directed energy weapon systems. Sensitivity to vibration, humidity, dust, and sand, as well as fragile optics and cooling demands, have all created further complications for operating and sustaining these systems in real-world environments. "* ![]() *A picture that the Army released in 2022 of quadcopter-type drones damaged during testing of P-HEL systems. *US Army** Army officials just recently touted the benefits of laser directed energy weapons like LOCUST, while also acknowledging again that there is still work to be done at [the Association of the U.S. Army’s (AUSA) main annual convention]() last month. “Lasers are real. We can do it. We can go out. We can shoot things,” Kirk Williams, Chief Engineer at the Army’s Directed Energy Project Office, another one of the panelists, said. “But what we got to do now is make these systems reliable enough so that the soldiers have the faith in them when they need them, and that’s really the main point that we’re trying to go after right now.” “We’re getting to the point where the systems are reliable enough, but we still have to make them maintainable and repairable because this is an Army system,” he continued. “It’s going to be on a battlefield. Things are going to break. We can break things in very creative ways, right? So if it’s not reliable, or if it’s not maintainable, if it’s not repairable, that’s a problem.” At least one LOCUST system is at least now participating in a very high-profile mission to help protect President Trump. *Contact the author: joe@twz.com* ## Author Joseph is *TWZ’s* Deputy Editor, helping to oversee the site’s highly experienced and dedicated team, while also writing informative and impactful defense and national security content. He lives right in the thick of it in the Washington, D.C. area. ### Author social links [Twitter]() [Bluesky]() ## More - [Laser Rocket Anti-Drone Systems Being Rushed To U.S. Forces In The Middle East]() - [U.S. Military Laser Weapon Programs Are Facing A Reality Check]() - [Massive Chinese Anti-Drone High-Power Microwave Weapon Emerges]() - [Here’s What NORAD’s Commander Just Told Us About The Langley AFB Drone Incursions]() - [AC-130 Gunship’s Laser Weapon Cancelled, 105mm Howitzer May Be Removed]() - [Containerized Variant Of Navy’s Drone-Swatting HELIOS Laser Being Pushed By Congress]() - [Drones Over U.S. Bases May Be Threatening Spy Flights: NORTHCOM Commander]() - [Navy HELIOS Laser Aboard USS Preble Zaps Drone In Latest Test]()