Saab is introducing a new version of its Combat Boat 90 military assault craft called the Combat Boat 90 Capability X (CB90 CX), the Swedish company announced on 2 November 2026.
The new craft comes in three crewed configurations – intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR), anti-ship warfare, and short-range air defence (SHORAD) – to “address the evolving threats of modern naval reality, enabling a more distributed, flexible, and resilient naval force”, Saab stated.
The CB90 CX thus expands the role of Saab’s traditional Combat Boats beyond troop transport duties (although some are already used for command and control (C2)).
The new craft is larger than its predecessor. While the Combat Boat 90 Next Generation, which entered service in 2019, has a length of 16.3 m and a beam of 3.8 m, the CB90 CX has a length of 18 m and a beam of 4 m.
Powered by two 1,100 hp engines, the CB90 CX is capable of speeds exceeding 40 knots (74 km/h) and can accommodate a crew of 10 operators.
CB90 CX variants
The three initial configurations have distinct operational roles. The ISR configuration focuses on multi-domain situational awareness and sensor-to-effector co-ordination. For this it is equipped with Saab’s Sea Giraffe 1X radar and a Trackfire remote weapon station (RWS). The Sea Giraffe 1X delivers continuous 360° surveillance, with a technical range exceeding 100 km, enabling simultaneous detection, classification and tracking of air and surface targets, including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), small vessels and fast-moving threats. By sharing and combining real-time sensor data across multiple platforms, the CB90 CX ISR variant contributes to a more comprehensive common operational picture, improving situational awareness and supporting co-ordinated responses. Combined with the Trackfire RWS’s advanced electro-optical sensors, stabilisation and integrated fire control, this enables rapid target acquisition, accurate tracking and effective engagement of emerging threats, including UAVs, in complex maritime environments.
The CB90 CX anti-ship warfare variant is equipped with MBDA Marte ER anti-ship missiles and to deliver a precision strike capability against surface targets at ranges exceeding 100 km. Combining advanced guidance and navigation systems with targeting data from external sensors, the platform enables effective engagement of surface targets beyond the radar horizon. With active radar guidance, sea-skimming flight profiles and all-weather capability, this solution “significantly enhances the CB90 CX’s operational reach, flexibility and combat effectiveness in complex maritime environments”, Saab stated.
The SHORAD-roled CB90 CX, meanwhile, is equipped with Rheinmetall’s SeaSnake 30 remote-controlled weapon station, which features a stabilised 30 mm automatic cannon, advanced electro-optical and infrared sensors, integrated fire control system and programmable airburst ammunition. This configuration is designed to provide flexible protection against low-altitude airborne threats, including increasingly proliferating UAVs.
Saab stated of the three variants, “By operating together, they provide navies with complementary capabilities that enhance their combined operational effectiveness or as part of a wider joint forces mix.”
Anders Hellman, head of Saab’s Docksta business unit, was quoted by the company as stating, “The future of naval operations is not just about having more platforms; it is about distributing greater combat capability across the force. As operational realities change, so does CB90. CB90 CX reflects this evolution, moving beyond troop transport to connecting sensors and weapons and delivering combat capability directly from the boat, whether crewed or uncrewed.”
In production
The CB90 CX is currently under production for Sweden as the launch customer, Saab noted, and will co-exist alongside the Swedish Armed Forces fleet of CB90 NGs.
CB90s serve in nine naval forces worldwide. Beyond Sweden these include naval forces in Greece, Malaysia, Mexico, Norway, Peru, Poland, Ukraine and the United States.
