Pb1−xSrxS/PbS double‐heterostructure stripe contact lasers were prepared for the first time using a hot‐wall expitaxy technique. The laser operated up to 245 K pulsed (2.97 &mgr;m) and 174 K cw, which are the highest operating temperatures ever reported for any semiconductor diode lasers operating around 3 &mgr;m. In this letter preparation and properties of the Pb1−xSrxS lasers are presented.