A flashlamp-pumped Ti:A/sub 2/O/sub 3/ oscillator has delivered 6.5 J per pulse at 800 nm under long-pulse extraction conditions. The device was designed for efficient short-pulse (2-3 ns) amplification to the multijoule energy level. To date, a peak stored energy in excess of 5 J has been obtained and is available for short-pulse extraction studies. The design and resulting characterization of this laser are discussed. The results show that the energy available for short-pulse extraction is limited by the flashlamp pumping time.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">></ETX>