Saab unveils new speed assault boat for Swedish Navy

PARIS — Swedish defense manufacturer Saab has unveiled the Combat Boat 90 (CB90) CX, a drone boat designed to strike targets beyond the horizon and counter short-range aerial threats, to equip the Swedish Navy.

The company introduced the new speed assault boat Sunday morning before the Euronaval defense show taking pl ace in Paris this week. The CB90CX is designed to operate entirely without a human crew on board, according to Saab, and is promoted as a larger, heavier payload platform than the existing 16.3m-long CB90 Next-Generation (CB90 NG), which is already in service with nine navies globally.

“One of the key distinctions is that the CB90 NG can be upgraded for optionally crewed operations, whereas the CB90CX is designed for uncrewed operations from the outset,” Anders Hellman, head of Saab’s business unit Docksta, told Breaking Defense today.

The CB90CX is 18m long, and according to Hellman, its larger hull increases payload capacity by over 50 percent. He added that it is also integrated with an entirely new vessel infrastructure, which includes an integrated ship automation and monitoring system, fire control system, and steer-by-wire technology.

The new CB90 CX is envisioned to be available in three configurations: an intelligence and surveillance variant relying on Saab’s Giraffe 1X radar; an anti-ship warfare role to enable beyond-line-of-sight strikes against surface vessels; and a short-range air defense variant. The air defense variant will be made possible by equipping the boat with an anti-aircraft automatic cannon that could down uncrewed threats such as drones, according to the manufacturer.

“The capabilities offered through our proposed configurations are well-aligned with the broader operational requirements and future direction outlined in the Swedish Armed Forces Amphibious Battalion 2030 concept,” Hellman said.

The Amphibious Battalion 2030 concept is a modernization program that seeks to shift the Scandinavian country’s traditional coastal defense strategy toward a more mobile, dispersed maritime force. In practice, this means that rather than adopting larger platforms, naval units will use smaller, fast platforms intended to be scattered across the islands and shallow waters of the Baltic Sea and Nordic archipelagos.

The craft is already under production, destined for the Swedish Navy as the launch customer. Hellman could not disclose delivery timelines, only that these will “co-exist” with the service’s existing CB90 NG boats.

In Q2 of 2025, the Swedish Defence Material Administration, or FMV, placed an order for 22 CB90NGs, valued at about 900 million SEK ($92 million) . It was intended to replace some of the 16 CB90s the country has provided to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as part of previous support packages.

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巴黎——瑞典国防制造商萨博公司推出了战斗艇 90 (CB90) CX，这是一款无人艇，旨在打击地平线以外的目标并对抗近程空中威胁，以装备瑞典海军。

在巴黎本周举行的欧洲海军防务展（Euronaval）开幕前夕，萨博公司于周日上午发布了新型高速突击艇。据萨博公司介绍，CB90CX的设计完全无需船员操作，并且比现有的16.3米长的CB90下一代（CB90 NG）拥有更大的尺寸和更重的有效载荷。CB90 NG目前已在全球九个国家的海军服役。

“关键区别之一在于，CB90 NG 可以升级为可选有人驾驶操作，而 CB90CX 从一开始就设计为无人驾驶操作，”萨博 Docksta 业务部门负责人 Anders Hellman 今天告诉 Breaking Defense。

CB90CX长18米，据赫尔曼称，其更大的船体使有效载荷能力提高了50%以上。他还补充说，该船还集成了一套全新的船舶基础设施，其中包括集成的船舶自动化和监控系统、消防系统以及线控转向技术。

新型CB90 CX预计将提供三种配置：一种是情报监视型，采用萨博公司的Giraffe 1X雷达；一种是反舰作战型，可对水面舰艇进行超视距打击；还有一种是近程防空型。据制造商称，防空型将配备一门防空自动炮，用于击落无人机等无人目标。

“我们提出的配置所提供的能力与瑞典武装部队两栖营 2030 概念中概述的更广泛的作战需求和未来方向非常契合，”赫尔曼说。

“2030两栖营”概念是一项现代化计划，旨在将这个北欧国家传统的海岸防御战略转变为一支更加机动、分散的海上力量。在实践中，这意味着海军部队将不再采用大型平台，而是使用小型、快速的平台，这些平台将被分散部署在波罗的海和北欧群岛的岛屿和浅水区。

该艇已在生产中，将作为首个客户交付给瑞典海军。赫尔曼未能透露交付时间表，只表示该艇将与瑞典海军现有的CB90 NG艇“共存”。

2025年第二季度，瑞典国防物资管理局（FMV）订购了22架CB90NG装甲车，价值约9亿瑞典克朗（9200万美元）。此举旨在替换瑞典此前作为援助计划的一部分向乌克兰武装部队提供的16架CB90装甲车中的一部分。

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