French government orders laser weapon prototype for Paris Olympics

By Xiaofei Xu, CNN

Updated 0835 GMT (1635 HKT) August 3, 2022

An illustration of the HELMA-P drone neutralization. The French Ministry of the Armed Forces ordered a prototype of the system to be deployed at Paris 2024.

Paris, France (CNN)Beach volleyball against the backdrop of the Eiffel Tower, equestrian disciplines in the magnificent Versailles Palace garden, and the Opening Ceremony on the Seine — France plans to charm visitors from around the world with everything that Paris has to offer during the 2024 Summer Olympics.

The latest, yet less glamorous addition to its Olympic arsenal is a laser weapon system that will shoot drones down from the sky.The French Ministry of the Armed Forces announced in June that it has ordered one prototype of an anti-drone laser weapon system, called HELMA-P, to be deployed for the 2024 Paris Olympics.«The HELMA-P system provides a calibrated response to the drone threat, from dazzling the drone's observation instruments to the neutralization of a mini or micro drone (from 100g to 25kg) by altering its structure, causing it to fall in a few seconds,» the ministry said in a statement.«Altering its structure» is a nice way to say burning a hole through any potential drone.Read MoreThis prototype will also help «deepen the military's understanding of its deployment,» as an anti-drone campaign is a priority laid out by the French Ministry of the Armed Forces for the 2019-2025 period, according to the statement.The International Olympic Committee (IOC) told CNN that security of the Games is the responsibility of local authorities.Jim Thorpe reinstated as sole winner of 1912 Olympic decathlon and pentathlon by IOCThe HELMA-P system can shoot out powerful laser beams that heat up drones to a