A warfighter is staring down two very different threats. First, a swarm of cheap, makeshift drones buzzing toward a unit’s forward position. Seconds later, a high‑end, long‑range, precision‑guided system streaks across the horizon, heading toward a heavily populated military base.

One threat, designed to overwhelm by sheer quantity, costs our adversaries only a few thousand dollars to make. The other costs millions, intended to outmatch by complexity and sophistication. Both can show up in the same fight, aimed at the same target, resulting in unacceptable risk to human lives and critical infrastructure.

This is where an “either/or” conversation based on cost alone doesn’t adequately capture what’s at stake. The reality of conflict isn’t binary and requires the availability of a full spectrum of capability. The warfighter needs the right tool for the right target and often needs multiple options at a moment’s notice.

Backed by nearly a century of experience delivering propulsion systems at scale, L3Harris provides this mission‑ready capability today with the flexibility to support any need, no matter the threat sophistication, at the speed of modern warfare.

Delivering Agility for High‑Volume Threats

Low‑cost interceptors aren’t bargain‑bin missiles. They are a crucial element of a scalable defense architecture created for the kinds of threats that proliferate dangerously fast. You use them when you need to intercept ten threats in ten seconds or when it isn’t prudent to fire a multi‑million‑dollar system at something assembled in a garage.

Affordable, capable munitions – as Quinlan Lyte, President of L3Harris’ Advanced Effects sector, outlined recently – create resilience. They offer the ability to keep fighting without draining premium resources. They make battlefield sustainment possible.

To power affordable resilience, L3Harris continues to make important advancements in low-cost propulsion. For example, the company’s liquid- and solid-fueled ramjet technologies can help make both interceptor and strike munitions more affordable than ever, with greater range and more capability.

In the last two years alone, the company increased its internal investment in these technologies more than sixfold.

And by layering artificial intelligence onto manufacturing processes like non‑destructive testing, by incorporating advanced mixing techniques and by adding robotics and additive manufacturing, we’re dramatically shortening production cycle times across a range of missile propulsion systems, boosting output and improving consistency across solid rocket motor manufacturing.

Together, these modernized processes enable more affordable propulsion solutions for the low‑cost munitions our warfighters and allies are increasingly relying upon.

In addition to affordable, dependable propulsion, L3Harris provides tip-to-tail missile capabilities. Our portfolio of capabilities includes advanced fuzing to improve precision and lethality against small targets, as well as platform-agnostic seekers that address layers of mission requirements. We also provide electronic safe-and-arm designs compatible with existing inventory, maneuverable vehicle protection concepts and longer-range counter-unmanned aerial system options

These solutions aren’t theoretical. Many are already in the field — like L3Harris’ proximity fuzes integrated into the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System used in the company’s precision-strike VAMPIRE TM C-UAS system.

These low-cost munitions would not be possible without scalability. You must be able to produce systems en masse to deter the adversary and defeat the threat. The good news is this: Today, we produce more than 115,000 solid rocket motors of all sizes, and over the last few years, we’ve demonstrated our ability to significantly increase production for numerous programs.

When Capability Must Dominate

There are moments when “good enough” simply isn’t. In cases where threats are highly maneuverable and operating at altitudes where they’re not easily countered, successful intercepts depend on highly capable systems operating at the cutting edge of what’s possible — systems built for complex targets, extended ranges and missions where precision is measured in micrometers. These “exquisite” weapons deliver deterrence through extraordinary capability, reassuring decision‑makers that even in the worst‑case scenarios, the nation has the tools it needs to respond decisively and effectively.

L3Harris plays a critical role in this space, too, delivering the exquisite propulsion systems the nation relies on today, from THAAD’s solid rocket boost motor and Divert and Attitude Control System to the propulsion that powers the Standard Missile and PAC‑3 MSE interceptors.

To address the ever-growing need for both affordable mass and exquisite systems, L3Harris has taken major steps to expand production capacity. We’re constructing approximately 60 facilities to provide more than 1 million square feet of additional solid rocket motor manufacturing space, which will bring our total space supporting SRM manufacturing to more than 3 million square feet.

This expansion is backed by deliberate, early investment: more than $3 billion capital buildout to increase solid rocket motor production and strengthen our sub-tier supply chain to address our nation’s urgent needs.

These investments will enable us to double, triple and quadruple propulsion production across a range of programs.

Why the Answer Is Layered

The debate over low‑cost versus exquisite tends to treat the two as opposing philosophies: quantity versus quality, simple versus sophisticated.

But the smart approach – and the one the warfighter increasingly depends on – is layered defense.

Low‑cost interceptors and affordable munitions expand capacity and keep the fight sustainable. Exquisite systems provide overmatch, meet tougher mission requirements and deter escalation. This layered approach creates a stronger defense ecosystem.

It’s not an “either/or” conversation. It’s a “both/and” requirement.

L3Harris’ propulsion portfolio, advanced effects offerings and proven heritage in missile technologies allow us to deliver affordable systems quickly while also producing high‑end capabilities at scale. Few organizations in the market today can do both.

The Road Ahead

U.S. and allied forces need capabilities that address evolving threats responsibly, affordably and with the performance required for combat missions. Whether the demand is high‑volume defense or precision engagement, the priority is the same – to stay ahead of the threat.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth reiterated his expectations for industry when addressing our team in Camden, Arkansas, earlier this year: Build more and build faster.

That’s exactly what L3Harris is doing – building the low‑cost tools that keep the fight sustainable while also producing the exquisite systems that make sure the fight is won.

The battlefield isn’t binary. America’s Arsenal of Freedom shouldn’t be either.