PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Sep 18, 2026--
Attalon, a leading provider of advanced defense technologies, today announced the shipment of its first Valaris high-energy laser subsystem to a U.S. customer in support of an international defense program, marking an important milestone as demand for mission-ready directed energy capabilities continues to expand among U.S. allies.
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The shipment represents the first Valaris subsystem produced for an international end-use requirement and expands the platform’s reach beyond U.S. defense programs. Designed and manufactured in the United States, Valaris brings mission-ready high-energy laser capability to defense programs requiring performance, reliability and production at scale.
“This milestone demonstrates the growing demand for Valaris and for high-energy laser technology that can be produced, fielded, and sustained at scale,” said John Bergeron, CEO of Attalon. “Attalon is building that capability here in the United States in support of the U.S. warfighter while extending proven, U.S. built technology to allied forces upgrading their capabilities around the world.”
The international milestone comes as Attalon continues to expand U.S. production capacity to meet growing demand for high-energy laser systems. The company recently announced a $15 million investment in directed energy manufacturing capacity, workforce and capital equipment as customers transition high-energy laser technologies into production programs.
This first international program extends the reach of Valaris while reinforcing Attalon’s commitment to U.S.-based engineering and manufacturing. As the United States and its allies invest in next-generation defense capabilities, Attalon is scaling the advanced technologies required to meet evolving mission needs.
About Valaris
Valaris is Attalon’s family of mission-ready, beam combined high-energy laser subsystems engineered for integration into operational defense systems. The platform includes coherently, spectrally and dichroically beam combined architectures spanning power levels from 5 kW to more than 400 kW. Built on decades of laser engineering and manufacturing expertise, Valaris is designed for the performance, reliability, maintainability and production scale required to move directed energy capability from development to the field.
About Attalon
Attalon develops and manufactures mission-critical technologies for advanced defense and aerospace systems. Across Directed Energy & Advanced Lasers, Precision Optics and Precision Coatings, Attalon produces high-energy laser and beam director subsystems, laser amplifiers and components, precision telescopes and optical assemblies, optics and windows, thin-film coatings, advanced optical materials, and optical, EMI and RF patterned coatings.
Headquartered in Philadelphia, Attalon operates advanced engineering and manufacturing facilities across the United States, combining deep technical heritage with vertically integrated U.S. manufacturing to strengthen the defense industrial base and deliver critical capabilities to the warfighter.
For more information, visit www.atln.com.
Valaris, Attalon's scalable high-energy laser subsystem, prepared for shipment from their U.S. manufacturing facility in Bloomfield, CT. Built for the demands of operational directed energy, Valaris delivers high-power laser capability in an architecture engineered for reliability, maintainability, and production at scale. Today marks Attalon's first Valaris shipment in support of an international defense program, expanding the reach of U.S. built technology and strengthening the capabilities available to the U.S. warfighter and allied forces.
Iran says it struck an oil tanker trying to transit the Strait of Hormuz, while hundreds of thousands of people rallied in Tehran in the largest show of support for the government since the United States and Israel launched attacks in February.
Meanwhile, South Korea says it is considering expanding a naval operation in the Gulf of Aden to protect its ships and oil-shipping routes, but it will not send troops to intervene in the Iran war.
Here is the latest news from the Middle East on Friday. Full coverage is available here.
Iran said it struck the Togo-flagged oil tanker Trend over what it described as an “illegal attempt” to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, according to the state broadcaster, which cited the Revolutionary Guard Corps.
The Associated Press could not immediately confirm the report.
The Guard's navy warned that vessels attempting to pass through the strait without authorization would face “destruction,” the broadcaster said. Tehran has asserted control over the waterway since the U.S. and Israel launched the war on Feb. 28.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported a “security incident” overnight involving a vessel 16 nautical miles northeast of Khasab, Oman, which lies on the other side of the strait. The crew was safe and no environmental impact was reported, the monitor said.
It was not clear whether the UKMTO report referred to the attack claimed by Iran.
The U.S. military has been escorting some commercial ships through the strait off Oman as the threat of Iranian attacks continues.
Separately, the UKMTO said a tanker in the strait was hit by an “unknown projectile,” causing a fire that was later extinguished. The crew was reported safe, with no immediate indication of environmental damage, it said.
The AP could not independently confirm the incident, and there was no immediate claim from Iran.
The monitor also said another tanker was struck Wednesday by an “unknown projectile” while transiting out of the strait, with the crew reported safe. It was not clear why the report came later.
Hundreds of thousands of Iranians filled the streets of Tehran in the biggest rally since the war began in February, pledging to take up arms as “Janfaday-e Iran,” or those “who sacrifice their lives for Iran.”
Iran’s government has sought to rally the people and stress national unity, even as the economy worsens under a U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and new U.S. sanctions meant to increase Tehran’s economic pain.
Some participants trampled flags of the U.S. and Israel. Others chanted “Death to America” and “Death to Israel.”
Hundreds of people rallied in northern areas of Yemen in support of the Houthis and to protest Saudi Arabia’s accusation that the rebels targeted Islam’s holiest site, Mecca.
Houthi-controlled Al-Masirah TV showed protesters carrying pictures of the Kaaba, a landmark in Mecca, along with Yemeni, Iranian, Lebanese and Palestinian flags. A speaker reiterated the Houthis’ opposition to Saudi Arabia, which supports Yemen's internationally recognized government.
The Saudis said they intercepted a Houthi drone targeting Mecca earlier this week. The Houthi leadership has denied responsibility.
The Houthis are fighting Saudi-backed Yemeni forces, which lately has fueled mass displacement of more than 100,000 people.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said his government is considering expanding the operations of a naval unit deployed in the Gulf of Aden off the coasts of Yemen and Somalia to protect his country’s vessels and oil shipping routes.
But he stressed that South Korea would not take action that would draw it into the U.S.-Iran conflict, pushing back against recent pressure from the Trump administration. South Korea has deployed the anti-piracy Cheonghae Unit for years.
The growing threat from Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen to shipping in the region has alarmed countries and markets, even though the rebels have said they are only targeting the assets of neighboring Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter.
“There will be no troop deployment that involves or intervenes in the war,” Lee said.
A UKMTO update said there have been no new attacks on shipping in the Red Sea in the week since Houthi rebels captured strategic islands on the Bab el-Mandeb Strait at its southern end.
The monitor noted increased Houthi control of parts of Yemen’s west coast and described the threat level for the southern Red Sea as “substantial.” But it said the latest recorded attacks, including near misses, were on Aug. 24, though northbound and southbound transits of the strait are down.
In the Strait of Hormuz, UKMTO said U.S.-facilitated ship transits off Oman have averaged 24 a day over the past week. Overall, traffic remains about 90% lower than before the war.
This piece will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.
Palestinian civil defense crews carry a body from the rubble of a collapsed building that housed displaced Palestinians and was heavily damaged during the Israel-Hamas war, in Gaza City, Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
Armed personnel affiliated with Iran's Revolutionary Guard take part in the state-organized "Janfada," or "Sacrifice for Iran," military exercise in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Sept. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
Protesters stage a rally against the possible deployment of South Korean troops to the Strait of Hormuz and a U.S. demand for the deployment, near the U.S. Embassy in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, Sept. 17, 2026. The banners read ''Oppose troop deployment.'' (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
