CILAS SLD400 uses an optical head (diode laser with video or thermal camera) detects sniper's optics. July 1998 (issue 150) of Revue Aerospatiale. French system.
Have no doubt Sandia Labs in Albuquerque and Los Alamos National Labs in Los Alamos are on top of anti-sniper technology.
The airborne laser is being developed as part of the anti-ballistic missile defence here. Some of these people go into bubbles in other parts of the world just to chat.
The phrase, "Go ahead; make my day," takes on even greater irony.
Lasers: Hard-Hitting Watchdogs
The best way to dissuade snipers is to deprive them of their impunity by ensuring they know that their exact location has been pinpointed. CILAS demonstrated this at Eurosatory with its directed-optics laser detector- the first production unit intended ultimately for delivery to the French army. This ground-breaking technology can be expected to bring other developments in its wake.
Quietly, free from media hype, things have suddenly changed since a prototype of the SLD400 was received by the French armed forces. Behind this mundane designation lurks a device capable of detecting, locating and indentifying the optics with which snipers are equipped.
The scope of application of the SLD400 is much wider and can include the protection of VIPs and pinpointing sharpshooters or the binoculars of terrorists preparing criminal acts.
The technology enables the building of databases of specific optical device signatures to better assess threat levels.