US Marine Corps air defence suppression capabilities could be enhanced with the Green Wolf stand-off electronic warfare system.
L3Harris’ Green Wolf air-launched electronic warfare system, an artist’s rendering of which is shown here, is designed to work closely with the company’s Red Wolf air-to-surface missile. Both weapons could support Marine Corps’ air defence suppression missions.
In January 2026 L3Harris was awarded a $86.2 million contract to supply the company’s Red Wolf air-to-surface stand-off missile to the United States Marine Corps (USMC). Red Wolf is being procured in answer to the USMC’s Precision Attack Strike Missile (PASM) requirement. PASM will equip USMC Bell Textron AH-1Z Viper attack helicopters. Using the weapon, the gunships will be able to engage targets at ranges of circa 172 nautical miles/nm (319 kilometres/km).
Red Wolf’s acquisition may open the door for the USMC’s eventual procurement of its Green Wolf sibling. Green Wolf shares the same airframe as Red Wolf but is equipped with an Electronic Warfare (EW) payload. Armada understands that the payload will support three EW mission subsets: Green Wolf will jam and decoy hostile emitters typically ground-based air surveillance and fire control/ground-controlled interception radars. Alternatively, this EW payload can detect, identify and locate, henceforth known as process, hostile emitters. Target coordinates can be shared with the Red Wolf missiles which can then engage and destroy these radars.
EW payload
L3Harris has not shared any information regarding the frequencies that Green Wolf’s payload can process. Nonetheless, company’s Deceptor small form factor EW payload can process signals across a 30 megahertz to 36GHz waveband, depending on the configuration, according to the company’s official literature. Deceptor can be configured to have between two and eight independent transmit/receive channels. The payload weighs five pounds (two kilograms) regardless of its configuration. Alongside Deceptor L3Harris told Armada, via a written statement, that “any number of electronic warfare payloads (can be integrated on Green Wolf) to meet mission requirements”.
Although the Red Wolf/Green Wolf teaming concept is applicable to the USMC’s AH-1Z helicopters, the statement continued that Green Wolf can also be launched from ground and/or air platforms. Armada understands that Green Wolf is currently at Technology Readiness Level Seven (TRL-7). According to the US Department of Defence’s own criteria, TRL-7 denotes that a system prototype has been demonstrated in an operational environment. No additional information was supplied by the company concerning potential initial and full operational capability dates should the USMC move ahead with Green Wolf’s acquisition
Assessment
Should such a procurement take place, this could represent an important enhancement for the USMC’s Suppression/Destruction of Enemy Air Defence (S/DEAD) capabilities. The force currently deploys the AN/ALQ-231 Intrepid Tiger-II electronic attack system developed by the US Navy’s Naal Air Warfare Centre Weapons division. Intrepid Tiger-II equips USMC Lockheed Martin KC-130J turboprop tankers, Bell Textron UH-1Y Venom medium-lift utility helicopters and Bell-Boeing MV-22B Osprey rotorcraft. Marine Corps General Atomics MQ-9A Reaper uninhabited combat aerial vehicles accommodate the L3Harris/General Atomics Reaper Defence Electronic Support System/Scalable Open Architecture Reconnaissance (RDESS/SOAR). RDESS/SOAR is an airborne electronic support measure which Armada understands processes emissions across wavebands of two megahertz to 40 gigahertz. USMC Lockheed Martin F-35B/C Lightning combat aircraft deploy Northrop Grumman AGM-88G Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile-Extended Range air-to-surface weapons.
Plans are also afoot to enhance the USMC’s Lockheed Martin M-142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS) surface-to-surface weapon with the Precision Strike Missile Increment-2 (PRSM-2) improvement. PRSM-2 outfits these rockets with a passive radio frequency seeker to process hostile radar signals, including the threats discussed above, and signals from naval surveillance radars. According to reports, the PRSM-2 improvement is expected to reach initial operational capability in 2027. Full operational capability should follow in the 2030/31 timeframe.
Taken together, these S/DEAD capabilities will ensure that the Marine Corps can provide a robust offensive counter-air posture to other USMC units, sister US and allied militaries. Several of these capabilities, such as Green Wolf, AGM-88G and PRSM-2, provide stand-off ranges over 160nm (300km) helping aircraft remain outside the lethal range of ground-based air defences. Such ranges also to accommodate the large distances in the Asia-Pacific where any future conflict between the US and the People’s Republic of China would occur.
by Dr. Thomas Withington
