Red Wolf Long-Range Missiles for Marine Corps AH-1Z Vipers

“We’ve now proven our (Red Wolf missile)…will help provide our warfighters the asymmetrical advantage they need to handle increasingly sophisticated threats, without the need to enter into adversary weapon engagement zones.” — Ed Zoiss, President of L3Harris’ Space and Airborne Systems.

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On January 30, 2026, L3Harris Technologies of Ashburn, Virginia, was selected by the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) to develop, test, and manufacture brand-new, Red Wolf long-range missiles for the Marine Corps’ Precision Attack Strike Munition (PASM) program with an $86.2-million contract, after 52 successful, live-fire tests of the new missile system, including a low-altitude launch from a Marine Corps AH-1Z Viper attack helicopter in September 2025 over the Atlantic Test Range. The test results were officially disclosed on December 19th, 2025, resulting in the successful engagement of a sea-based target.

The Red Wolf mini-cruise missile was initially unveiled on July 17, 2025, in an effort to provide large quantities of comparatively low-cost, stand-off, precision munitions to complement existing, high-end, cruise missiles in a major war scenario.

The AH-1Z Viper may be armed with as many as eight (normally) to 16 (maximum load) AGM-114K2A Hellfire II laser-guided missiles, or newer, AGM-179A JAGM (Joint Air-to-Ground Missile; $319,000 each), which are very similar in size and weight, at 64 to 70 inches long, seven inches in diameter, and 100 to 108 pounds overall, with a range of five to 6.8 miles, depending upon the variant.

But the Marine Corps wanted a longer-range missile, able to reach out as far as 170 miles or more, yet much smaller and less expensive than the AGM-158C Long-Range, Anti-Ship Missile (LRASM), at $700,000 to $1 million per copy.

Red Wolf fits into exactly the same size and weight category as a Hellfire II or JAGM missile, at exactly 72 inches (six feet) long, with a 25-pound payload (warhead and seeker), and the same price range as a JAGM missile, at $300,000 (possibly as high as $500k initially), but instead of being rocket-boosted and supersonic in flight, the Red Wolf is a subsonic, turbojet-powered (German-made engine), mini-cruise missile with fold-out fins and wings for long-distance flight, and can fly as far as 230 miles, at very low altitude!

This long range is the Red Wolf’s principal advantage, making it the longest-range weapon for the Marine Corps helicopters. Ed Zoiss, the president of L3Harris’ Space and Airborne Systems, has stated that, “The Red Wolf…(is) lethal, modular, affordable, and ready to hunt…with a significant advantage in closing long-range kill chains, defeating adversarial threats in challenging environments, and protecting assets.” This long reach allows it to operate outside the engagement zones of modern, shipborne, surface-to-air missile systems and coastal missile networks. L3 Harris Technologies is fully prepared to produce up to 1,000 Red Wolf missiles per year, beginning in 2026. In addition to the AH-1Z Viper helicopter, it may be tailored to be launched from drones or ground vehicles.

With a modular and scalable payload section, the Red Wolf missile is able to accept different warhead types and seeker combinations, although based upon its very long range, and the images provided by L3 Harris Technologies, it likely employs some type of GPS mid-course guidance toward the target, and possibly imaging-infrared (IIR) terminal guidance, for a very precise impact point on the selected target.

The Red Wolf cruise missile is ideal for striking enemy naval vessels, particularly their radar masts and sensor systems, to blind them to additional, incoming threats, such as  U.S. Navy or Marine Corps F/A-18E/F Super Hornet jet fighters with more expensive, anti-ship missiles or Joint Strike Missiles (JSMs). Launched from AH-1Z Vipers operating from aircraft carriers, assault ships, austere locations on islands, or expeditionary bases, they could also attack enemy missile sites, radar sites, command posts, or other vital targets in greater volume and at lower cost than some of the larger, high-end missiles available.

Christopher Kubasik, the chairman and CEO of L3Harris Technologies, said that, “Recent conflicts and incursions over NATO airspace, particularly with the increased use of mass-produced drones, demonstrate the urgent need for cost-effective alternatives to exquisite munitions. Our proven, Red Wolf system can bring affordable mass to the Marines’ arsenal of advanced munitions…to support the most-lethal, fighting force in the world.”