L3Harris Unveils Red Wolf and Green Wolf Cruise Missiles, Filling Capability Gaps for U.S. Forces

 L3Harris has revealed details of its new family of cruise missiles — Red Wolf and Green Wolf — designed to fill a capability and cost gap in the U.S. military’s arsenal, particularly for the Marine Corps. According to the company, these missiles offer flexible, long-range strike and electronic warfare options while remaining affordable and deployable across a variety of platforms.

“We see applications across all the services, specifically with the Marine Corps. We have already launched our Red Wolf off of the AH-1Z Viper, the Super Cobra platform. You’re looking at a missile that, on that platform, moves from the 6–10 kilometer range to well beyond line of sight,” said Sterling Jones, VP and GM of Agile Development Group at L3Harris.

Two Missiles, Complementary Roles

The Red Wolf is a kinetic strike missile designed to hit both land and maritime targets, while the Green Wolf variant specializes in electronic warfare and intelligence missions. Green Wolf can loiter over a battlespace, detect radar emissions, perform electronic attacks, and relay targeting data to other platforms, including Red Wolf missiles.

The two missiles are also designed to operate in tandem. Green Wolf can provide targeting support to Red Wolf mid-flight, enhancing strike accuracy and survivability while reducing risk to manned electronic warfare platforms.

Testing and Platform Integration

Both missiles have been under development for over a decade, with extensive flight testing. L3Harris has reportedly conducted 45 test launches, including from the Marine Corps’ AH-1Z Viper attack helicopter. Additional testing is ongoing to integrate the missiles with various rotary, fixed-wing, and land-based platforms, expanding operational flexibility.

Size, Range, and Cost

Red Wolf and Green Wolf belong to a sub-250 lb (≈113 kg) class, capable of reaching ranges up to 200 nautical miles. Their lightweight design allows for deployment from smaller platforms that traditionally could not carry heavy cruise missiles.

Cost remains a central feature: Red Wolf is priced at $300,000, and Green Wolf at $500,000, both well below the million-dollar mark for larger cruise missiles. This affordability enables larger quantities to be deployed, giving commanders a cost-effective tool for distributed operations.

Modularity and Reuse

Both missiles feature modular designs. Red Wolf can carry interchangeable seeker heads to target both maritime and land targets. Green Wolf has demonstrated recovery and reuse capabilities, with tests showing it can be retrieved, refueled, and relaunched within 60 minutes. Future variants may include electronic decoys for integration with EA-18G Growler aircraft and box-launched versions for land and sea deployment.

Implications for the Marine Corps

For the U.S. Marine Corps, Red Wolf and Green Wolf represent a shift toward stand-off precision fires from expeditionary platforms. Light attack helicopters, ships, and small ground units can engage targets beyond line-of-sight without needing large, expensive cruise missiles. This aligns with broader efforts to increase operational reach while keeping costs manageable.

Red Wolf and Green Wolf highlight a growing trend in U.S. defense: affordable, networked, multi-domain capabilities that combine kinetic and electronic effects. With extensive testing complete and initial production underway, these missiles may soon become a cornerstone of the Marine Corps’ and other services’ long-range strike arsenal.