FARNBOROUGH, England, July 22 (Reuters) - The British

Army has carried out its first test of Raytheon's anti-drone

laser weapon from a military vehicle, the company said on

Monday, in the latest sign that drone warfare is a growing

priority for Western armed forces.

The high-energy laser, which is designed to wipe out aerial

drones, was fired aboard a British Army Wolfhound armoured

vehicle in Porton Down, a military facility in southern England,

Raytheon's parent company, RTX Corp. ( RTX ) said in a

statement. The company did not say when the test took place.

The war in Ukraine has been characterised by the deployment

of drones on an unprecedented scale, with thousands of unmanned

aircraft systems (UAS) used to track enemy forces, guide

artillery and bomb targets.

This transformation in battlefield tactics has increased

global demand for both drone and anti-drone equipment, defence

companies say.

"The increasing prevalence, proliferation and evolution of

drone warfare makes the rapid adoption of counter-UAS

technologies ever more important," RTX said.

The United States army has already deployed Raytheon's

high-energy laser, which has logged more than 40,000 testing

hours and downed more than 400 targets, the company said.