This aircraft was a testing platform that never worked consistently. It had large costs and mixed results. It tested at high altitudes on targets in the stratosphere where there are few if any atmospheric impediments for a laser. it would not have done as well at lower altitudes or ground level. "On February 12, 2012, the YAL-1 Airborne Laser Testbed made its final flight to Davis-Monthan AFB in Tucson, Arizona for internment at the AMARG Boneyard and eventual demolition after usable parts and systems were salvaged."