AGM - 176 Griffin The AGM - 176 Griffin is a lightweight , precision kinetic effects munition developed by Raytheon . It has been designed to be launched from the ground or air as a rocket - powered missile or dropped from the air as a guided bomb . It is intended as a precision low - collateral damage weapon with a relatively small warhead for the kinds of " irregular warfare operations " encountered on battlefields such as Afghanistan where it has been successfully proven in combat . Development . Raytheon developed Griffin as a low - cost modular system , using components from earlier projects , among others the FGM - 148 Javelin and the AIM - 9X Sidewinder . It was originally designed to be launched from the MC - 130W ' Dragon Spear ' gunship for the US Special Operations Command . It has been adapted into a gravity - dropped precision munition dropped from a rear cargo - door and rocket - powered forward - firing missile configurations as a short - range air - to - surface missile and surface - to - surface missile which can be fired from UAV s as well as C - 130 Hercules transport gunships and helicopters . Griffin has folding fins for tube - launching , with a 5 . 5 inch diameter . It can be guided either by a semi - active laser seeker or guided with GPS . Its precision combined with a relatively small 13 - lb warhead reduces collateral damage . Griffin A is unpowered and dropped by gravity . This air dropped munition weighs 33 lb and is 43 inches in length . It is launched from a 10 - tube “ Gunslinger ” launcher that fits on the rear ramp of a Marine KC - 130 tanker / transport that has been used in Afghanistan as an improvised alternative to expensive dedicated gunships . A paratroop door mounted launcher that can drop while the cabin is pressurized has also been developed . The Griffin Block II B is a forward - firing rocket powered missile for helicopter , aircraft and surface launching . It can be selected to engage the target with height of burst , point detonation or fuze delay . The US Navy has tested the Griffin as a shipboard missile guided by laser to score direct hits against fast - moving small boats . It plans to use them on the Littoral Combat Ship s . The missile version comprises less than half the weight of a Hellfire round and includes a 13 lb warhead . It has a range of 15 km when air - launched , or 5 . 5 km when launched from the surface . It has been fired from the US Army Remote weapon station , multi - round Wedge Launcher , Smart Launcher and Kiowa Warrior manned helicopters . The missile is smaller than the Hellfire typically used by armed UAV s , which has the effect of reducing the potential for collateral damage and three Griffins can be carried in place of one Hellfire . The Griffin missile and launch assembly is also significantly lighter than the Hellfire , allowing more to be mounted on the payload - limited Predator . Raytheon is developing an extended range version of the Griffin for integration onto Littoral Combat Ship s . The Sea Griffin will have a new motor and guidance system to increase its firing range from an LCS . Raytheon may face competition in equipping the LCS with a missile , as the Navy is looking for other vendors . Competition may come from MBDA with the Sea Spear version of its Brimstone missile . Both missiles intend to give the LCS protection from small boat swarm attacks . On 27 September 2013 , Raytheon and the U . S . Navy demonstrated the Griffin missile ' s ability to engage fast - moving small boats from various platforms throughout a series of at - sea tests . The MK - 60 Patrol Coastal Griffin Missile System was integrated on a , where the missile was successfully employed against remote - controlled boats simulating a threat to the ship .