The US Department of the Navy has selected L3Harris Technologies’ Red Wolf launched-effect vehicle for the US Marine Corps’ Precision Attack Strike Munition programme, delivering a major boost in range and survivability for helicopter-based strike operations.
The decision follows a demanding evaluation process that included 52 flight tests, with recent trials featuring low-altitude launches from the AH-1Z Viper.
The contract was awarded through an Other Transaction Agreement, a fast-track acquisition vehicle designed to speed the maturation and deployment of advanced technologies.
Under the agreement, L3Harris will provide the full Red Wolf system for AH-1Z integration, including munitions, training, technical data, support infrastructure, and test equipment. All deliveries are expected to be completed by the end of FY2027.
With an operational range exceeding 200 nautical miles (approximately 370 kilometres) and endurance of more than an hour, Red Wolf vastly outperforms existing helicopter-launched munitions such as Hellfire and JAGM.
Current AGM-114 Hellfire variants are limited to about 34 kilometres, while JAGM’s effective range is closer to 16 kilometres, forcing rotary-wing platforms to operate closer to hostile air defences in contested battlespaces.
In addition to kinetic strike capability, Red Wolf supports non-kinetic missions including electronic attack, signal detection, communications relay, and decoy operations. According to L3Harris, this multi-role flexibility enables a wider set of platforms to contribute to long-range effects.
Estimated to cost roughly $300,000 per unit and designed for annual production rates of up to 1,000 systems, Red Wolf offers an affordable, scalable solution to augment limited inventories of high-value long-range weapons during extended high-intensity conflicts.
Able to carry payloads weighing up to 25 pounds, the system can be used to suppress or disrupt enemy sensor networks ahead of follow-on strikes by larger anti-ship weapons such as LRASM or the Joint Strike Missile.
