On Thursday, 11 December 2025, the German company Diehl Defence signed a contract with the Defence Materiel Administration (FMV, Försvarets materielverk) of the Ministry of Defence of the Kingdom of Sweden for the delivery of additional short-range EldE 98 air defense systems, consisting of IRIS-T SLS (Infra-Red Imaging System–Tail/Surface Launched Short Range) missile launchers with a range of up to 10 km, mounted on the BAE Hägglunds Bv410 tracked chassis.
Photo: Diehl Defence
In addition to the IRIS-T SLS launchers, the contract also includes a comprehensive logistics package covering spare parts. With this new contract, Diehl Defence will continue its long history of successful cooperation with the Swedish Armed Forces. The details of the agreement have not been disclosed, and FMV has likewise not published any specifics.
The procurement plan was announced by Minister of Defence Pål Jonson on 25 November this year as part of an investment package worth 3.5 billion SEK. Of this amount, 1.5 billion SEK has been earmarked for IRIS-T SLS systems. The systems will be delivered to the I 19 Norrbotten Regiment and the P 4 Skaraborg Regiment.
The first systems, designated EldE 98 in Swedish service, were ordered in December 2012, and in November 2015 an option was exercised to procure additional missiles. Deliveries were originally scheduled to begin in 2016 but ultimately commenced in October 2019, with the completion of system qualification announced in July 2020.
In early 2023, reports emerged of negotiations initiated by the German government regarding the transfer of Swedish systems to Ukraine, which was then engaged in combat (a previous Swedish government had refused such a move). Ultimately, Stockholm agreed to supply Berlin with 12 launchers and sold approximately 200 missiles, which Germany, after adaptation, delivered to Ukraine as part of its military assistance (Ukraine also received Rb 97 systems, i.e. MIM-23 HAWK, and RBS 70). As a result of the significant depletion of its own stocks, Sweden decided to procure additional systems.
IRIS-T SLS is the land-based version of the system, radar-cued and equipped with IRIS-T/TCV (Infra-Red Imaging System Tail/Thrust Vector-Controlled) missiles. It is capable of engaging unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) using both Lock-On Before Launch (LOBL) and Lock-On After Launch (LOAL) modes. The systems operate in conjunction with Saab Giraffe AMB mobile air-surveillance radars as well as the Swedish Army’s command, control, and communications systems. They enable automated 24/7 airspace surveillance and the engagement of aerodynamic targets at ranges of up to 10 km and altitudes of up to 5 km.
The EldE 98 systems replaced the earlier Rb 97 (Robotsystem 97) air defense system integrated with the UndE 23 search radar, the PE-541 fire-control radar, and the LuLIS identification friend-or-foe system (which itself had replaced the older Robotsystem 77 in 2000).
The new EldE 98 systems will also complement the seven medium-range IRIS-T SLM (Medium Range) air defense missile systems ordered on 23 June this year for 9 billion SEK / 925 million USD, which may potentially replace the RBS 23 BAMSE (Bofors Advanced Missile System Evaluation) systems that were returned to service in 2019.
It is also worth noting that the airborne AIM-2000 IRIS-T missiles are used by Swedish JAS 39C/D Gripen multirole aircraft, which are currently being upgraded to the Block II standard.
