article_snippet: Margaret Thatcher is said to have ordered testing of a laser to be used in Falklands War .
article_snippet: A secret 'death ray' laser was developed during Falklands War and ordered for testing by the then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, documents reveal.
article_snippet: Britain was said to have worked with America to develop the high powered lasers for use on the battlefield during the 1970s and 1980s.
article_snippet: Existence of A secret 'death ray' laser was revealed in the National Archives, in a letter - marked 'top secret' from the then Defence Secretary Michael Heseltine to Margaret Thatcher in 1983 about the weapons owned by the Soviets and Britain's position.
article_snippet: In the 1980s Britain was said to be focused on developing medium power lasers directed against relatively softer targets such as eyes, optic and electro-optic sensors.
article_snippet: Britain's laser weapon research in the 1980s was covered by two programmes - known as Raker and Shingle.
article_snippet: According to the correspondence from Mr Heseltine, Britain had been working with America on developing laser weapons since the 1970s.
article_snippet: In the letter Mr Heseltine added: 'the Russians could be in a position to field such weapons by the mid-1980s (in fact, the Russians may already have deployed a laser weapon on the cruiser Kirov)'.
highlights_snippet: Britain believed to have worked with America on development of lasers .
  
highlights_snippet: It told of fears about the Soviets developing lasers and Britain's progress .
  