On Friday, May 8, 2026, Swedish company Saab Defence and Security announced that it is launching the new Bolide 2 interceptor missile, the successor to the first-generation Bolide, which is also designed for the RBS 70 NG (Robotsystem 70 New Generation) short-range surface-to-air missile system.
Photo: Saab Defence and Security
According to the published information, compared with its predecessor, Bolide 2 offers a larger warhead and improved terminal-phase performance, resulting in enhanced capabilities, as well as an improved modular design that enables future upgrades.
Bolide 2 retains the jam-resistant guidance method used in previous generations of RBS 70 system missiles. Deliveries will begin in 2027, and the new missile will become the standard munition for the fourth-generation RBS 70 NG.
“With Bolide 2 we are ready to provide our customers with an even more capable missile, ready to be adapted for any new threats in the sky. RBS 70 users can benefit from improvements including a more powerful warhead, whether they are operating in the man-portable role or, as is increasingly common, from a vehicle firing unit,” says Stefan Öberg, head of Saab’s business unit Missile Systems.
Bolide 2 can be fired from the latest-generation RBS 70 NG systems, as well as from launchers of earlier generations and new MSHORAD systems. As part of the missile’s development, a series of successful test firings has already been conducted.
The parameters of Bolide 2 have not been disclosed. In the case of Bolide, the current range is more than 9 km and the engagement altitude exceeds 5,000 m. These missiles are also effective against armored targets, such as aircraft, helicopters, unmanned aerial vehicles, and even ground targets.
In recent months, Canada, the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA), Latvia, and Argentina have decided to procure RBS 70 NG systems.
Outside Sweden, the system’s NATO users include Czechia, with RBS 70 and RBS 70 NG, and Finland, where it is known as Ilmatorjuntaohjus 05, ITO05 and ITO05M. In 2020, Norway sold its systems, which went to Lithuania. RBS 70 NG was recently offered unsuccessfully to Slovakia, where it lost to Poland’s Piorun MANPADS, although the contract has not yet been signed but has been announced. The systems have been delivered to more than 21 countries in total, most of them outside NATO, with 1,600 launchers and more than 18,000 missiles supplied.