"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.
Anders Hellman on crewed versus purpose-built uncrewed design
Saab introduced the Combat Boat 90 (CB90) CX at a Paris presentation ahead of the Euronaval defense show, positioning the new model as a purpose-built, uncrewed evolution of an existing family of fast assault boats. Anders Hellman framed the distinction against the CB90 Next-Generation (CB90 NG): the NG can be adapted for optionally crewed missions, while the CB90 CX is engineered from the start to operate entirely without personnel aboard. Hellman spoke directly to Breaking Defense about the design philosophy and operational intent.
Physical profile and onboard systems
The CB90 CX is 18 meters long, larger than the CB90 NG’s 16.3-meter hull. Saab says the increased hull size boosts payload capacity by more than 50 percent. The vendor also described a new vessel infrastructure for the platform that includes an integrated ship automation and monitoring system, a fire control system, and steer-by-wire technology — systems intended to support sustained uncrewed operations and remote control.
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End the scrambleThree mission configurations: Giraffe 1X radar, anti-ship strikes, and short-range air defence
Saab is offering the CB90 CX in three distinct configurations. An intelligence and surveillance variant will rely on Saab’s Giraffe 1X radar for sensing and ISR tasks. An anti-ship warfare variant is intended to enable beyond-line-of-sight strikes against surface vessels. A short-range air defence variant would mount an anti-aircraft automatic cannon to counter uncrewed threats such as drones, according to the manufacturer. Saab describes these roles as modular mission packages tailored to the platform’s increased payload and uncrewed design.
Alignment with the Swedish Armed Forces’ Amphibious Battalion 2030 concept
Saab tied the CB90 CX’s roles and form factor to the Swedish Armed Forces’ Amphibious Battalion 2030 concept, saying the platform’s capabilities are "well-aligned" with that modernization program. The Amphibious Battalion 2030 concept seeks to shift Sweden’s coastal defence posture toward a more mobile, dispersed maritime force built around smaller, fast platforms that can be scattered across islands and shallow waters in the Baltic Sea and Nordic archipelagos. Saab presents the CB90 CX as a craft suited to that dispersed, high-mobility approach.
Production, procurement signals, and the FMV order
Saab said the CB90 CX is already under production and that the Swedish Navy will be the launch customer. Hellman declined to disclose delivery timelines, noting only that the new uncrewed craft will "co-exist" with the service’s existing CB90 NG boats. The wider CB90 family remains an active procurement focus: in Q2 of 2025 the Swedish Defence Material Administration (FMV) placed an order for 22 CB90 NGs valued at about 900 million SEK (reported as $92 million). That order was intended to replace some of the 16 CB90s Sweden had provided to the Ukrainian Armed Forces as part of previous support packages.
What this means for the Swedish Navy, the FMV, and the Ukrainian Armed Forces
- Swedish Navy: Will receive a purpose-built uncrewed fast-attack option designed to operate alongside existing CB90 NG craft, expanding remote and remotely armed patrol options in littoral and archipelagic waters.
- Swedish Defence Material Administration (FMV): Faces an inventory and replacement dynamic — recent Q2 2025 procurement of 22 CB90 NGs covers gaps from transfers to Ukraine, while the CB90 CX represents a parallel procurement path focused on uncrewed capability.
- Ukrainian Armed Forces: Previously received 16 CB90s from Sweden; the FMV’s NG order was explicitly intended in part to replace some of those transferred boats.
Saab’s CB90 CX presents a clear, manufacturer-stated pivot: moving from optionally crewed upgrades to a hull designed from the keel up to operate without an onboard crew, with modular mission packages for ISR, anti-ship strikes, and short-range air defence. The company says production is underway and that the Swedish Navy will be the launch customer; the schedule for deliveries, however, remains undisclosed. How quickly the CB90 CX will be integrated into the dispersed, mobile force model outlined in Amphibious Battalion 2030 will depend on those timelines and on how the Swedish Navy chooses to balance crewed and uncrewed small-boat operations in the Baltic and archipelagic littorals.
