No, an airborne laser (ABL) and other energy weapons did not cause the Maui fires

By: Christian Haag
September 11 2023

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Claim

Recent viral posts on social claim that an airborne laser (ABL) and other directed energy weapons were used to cause fires in Maui, Hawaii (locally spelled Hawai'i). This attack is allegedly part of Agenda 2030 and the Great Reset to destroy inhabited areas and create new land for smart cities. 

The claims have primarily circulated on TikTok, as seen here and here, with one video reaching 479,000 views. 

In fact

The claim is false. The airborne laser (ABL) or the Yal.1A airborne laser testbed project was discontinued in 2012 after losing budget funding in 2011. The weapon was intended to shoot down ballistic missiles and started in 1996. The aircraft is stored at Davis Monthan Air Force Base near Tucson, Arizona. 

The U.S. Army has experimented with new ideas for directed energy weapons mounted on drones. However, there is no evidence such weapons caused the fires in Maui. PolitiFact, DW, Lead Stories, and other fact-checkers have also fact-checked and found the claims false.

The exact cause of the fires has not been determined and is still being investigated. It is currently believed that the fires were the result of months of drought, low humidity, and high winds. Combined with invasive plant species, this created a perfect storm for a wildfire. 

Several claims have been made about directed energy weapons being the cause of the fires on Maui, particularly footage showing a beam from the sky. Many of these have been fact-checked by Logically Facts, here, here, and here. The claim that the fires are related to the implementation of smart cities has also been fact-checked by Logically Facts and found to be false. Smart cities are a constant and common target by conspiracy theorists claiming to be part of WEF's or global elites' plans to implement a global authoritarian socialist government. This is also linked to the Great Reset conspiracy, which has been fact-checked by Logically Facts and proven false.  

The verdict

Considering that the airborne laser (ABL) was discontinued years ago and there is no evidence that direct energy weapons caused the wildfires on Maui, we have marked this claim as false.