TBH calling it an "old" 071 is a bit unfair -- I suspect the ship itself is still in frontline service (not to mention still pretty young in age) for its primary mission, different to the 072 that was used for railgun testing.
PRC/PLAN Laser and Rail Gun Development Thread
- Thread starter SinoSoldier
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TBH calling it an "old" 071 is a bit unfair -- I suspect the ship itself is still in frontline service (not to mention still pretty young in age) for its primary mission, different to the 072 that was used for railgun testing.
Interesting similarities to this from 2019
I think that turned out to be a missile tracking device and not a laser.
One other thing to keep in mind:
I mean yeah the weaknesses but also benefits of DEWs are pretty well established. It will have to be something 100 kW or higher. That said, and again pointing out the obvious, several navies are persistently trialing DEWs for CIWS duty and that will likely be its first application for hard countermeasure applications. The power consumption & material issues will likely be resolved in due time, though personally I dont expect significant progress before the 2030s.
broadsword
Brigadier
I'm hanging on Stephen Chen's articles on China's laser technology. 
I'm hanging on Stephen Chen's articles on China's laser technology.
He’ll probably claim that it uses 1.21 gigawatts of power and doesn’t damage the target by burning but rather by sending it back in time to be devoured by a T-Rex.