New Carl-Gustaf ammunition targets modern Russian tanks
A Carl-Gustaf M4 grenade launcher crew at the position
Swedish Saab AB continues to develop its line of ammunition for infantry systems. In May 2026, the company unveiled two new products: an anti-tank grenade for the Carl-Gustaf M4 and an anti-aircraft grenade. rocket for the RBS 70 NG short-range complex.
Anti-tank prospects
Saab Bofors Dynamics is developing ammunition within the group. On May 7, 2026, it announced a promising grenade for the Carl-Gustaf M4, designated the HEAT 758.
Further technical data on the grenade, unless otherwise stated, is based on Saab's own materials; independent verification was unavailable at the time of the announcement. The company positions the HEAT 758 as a response to the development of armored vehicle protection systems, primarily the explosive reactive armor (ERA) of modern main battle tanks. The development was conducted behind closed doors: the project was not disclosed until the official announcement, although a contract with the first customer had already been signed by that point.
HEAT 758 grenade
The launch customer's name is not disclosed in the press release, referring to the company as an "undisclosed customer." Production of the HEAT 758 for this customer is already underway; no direct statements regarding the start of shipments or production volumes are available in official materials.
The carrier and its capabilities
The Carl-Gustaf is an 84mm caliber, hand-held recoilless grenade launcher. The first version was developed in the middle of the last century, and the current M4 modification has been in production since 2014. Along with the Carl-Gustaf itself, weapons A line of compatible ammunition for various purposes was developed, and in recent years, electronic sighting systems were also developed.
Compared to its predecessors, the M4 is noticeably more compact and lighter:
- length - 950 mm;
- caliber - 84 mm;
- weight - 6,6 kg;
- maximum firing range (with high-explosive or smoke ammunition) - 1 km;
- effective range for moving targets: 350–400 m.
The HEAT 758 is a single-piece round with a rocket-propelled grenade and propellant charge. Its total weight is 3,7 kg, comparable to other anti-tank ammunition for the Carl Gustav (HEAT 551, HEAT 655 CS).
A grenade detonates near a target. This simulates explosive reactive armor.
The grenade has a distinctive design with an elongated nose cone. It uses a tandem shaped-charge warhead: the leading charge is contained within the nose cone, and the main charge is contained within an 84-mm casing. This design, optimized using digital modeling, allows the leading charge to initiate or destroy reactive armor blocks without prematurely detonating the main charge.
The claimed penetration is up to 700 mm of homogeneous armor. This figure requires a caveat: for 84mm tandem ammunition, the industry standard is approximately 500 mm behind the ERA (such as the HEAT 655 CS family), and 700 mm is at the upper limit of the caliber's physical capabilities and, in all likelihood, refers to ideal conditions for encountering an obstacle.
The press release also mentions the HEAT 758's ability to penetrate modern heavy ERA, including the Russian Kontakt-5 and Relikt systems. There were no independent public tests of these systems at the time of the announcement. Journalists from industry publications such as Janes and Army Technology attended the May demonstration in Karlskoga and recorded several incidents. On board tank A T-80 without ERA confirmed penetration at a range of 300 meters in the area of the turret ring. A demonstration of heavy ERA was conducted separately, using spaced standardized NATO targets with Kontakt/Relikt reticle and a 250mm rear armor plate. Here, Saab claimed successful "obstacle penetration," but detailed residual penetration measurements were not provided to journalists.
From a practical standpoint, this means that we are more likely to be talking about penetration of the side and rear projections of modern MBTs; guaranteed penetration of the frontal projection of vehicles with heavy ERA like the Relikt is not yet evident from the manufacturer's statements.
The HEAT 758 is fully compatible with the Firebolt fire control system, a proprietary Saab protocol for electronic data exchange between ammunition and sighting system, introduced in 2022 with the HE 448 grenade. When chambering a round, Firebolt automatically transmits the ammunition type and propellant temperature to the sight, eliminating the need for manual data entry. On the sight side, the protocol is supported by Saab's proprietary FCD 558 module and compatible Aimpoint (FCS13RE/FCS14RE) and Hensoldt sighting systems.
New rocket for RBS 70 NG
The second new product was unveiled on May 8. Saab Bofors Dynamics' missile division announced the Bolide 2 surface-to-air missile for the RBS 70 NG system. According to the company, the project has already completed some development, testing is underway, and the first batches are scheduled to be delivered to customers in 2027.
RBS 70 NG70 NG short-range anti-aircraft system
It's worth clarifying the classification: in marketing materials, the RBS 70 NG is often referred to as a MANPADS, but it's only loosely classified as a classic man-portable air defense system like the Stinger or Igla. It's fired from a tripod rather than from the shoulder, the operator works seated, and the total weight of the launch module, sight, and missile is well over 30 kg. It's more accurate to refer to it as a lightweight short-range air defense system (VSHORAD), carried by a crew rather than a single gunner.
The Bolide 2 is a major upgrade of the Bolide missile, aimed at expanding its range of targets. According to Saab, the updated product is also designed to engage small targets, such as UAVs and precision-guided munitions. The laser-guided architecture of the system enhances jamming immunity: the missile has no seeker capable of being decoyed or disrupted, and guidance can only be disrupted if the target loses the beam. This provides only an indirect advantage against stealth targets—detection and tracking remains the responsibility of the operator, who tracks the target optically or through the thermal imager of the targeting module, a task that remains challenging for small UAVs.
The missile is fully compatible with the RBS 70 NG without any modifications to the launch vehicle and will fit into the same ammunition loadout as missiles of previous modifications.
Technical part
The first version of the Robotsystem 70 (RBS 70) appeared in the mid-1970s. Since then, the missile line has undergone several iterations: in the 1980s, the Mk 1 and Mk 2 versions of the original SAM were developed, followed by the extensively modernized Bolide in 2003. Now, the Bolide 2 has been added to the lineup, set to compete globally with the French Mistral 3, the British Starstreak, and the Polish Piorun—the main players in the short-range, light missile class.
A MANPADS operator with a new type of missile in a container
All rockets in the family have a similar design: a cylindrical body with a conical fairing and two sets of folding wings. The dimensions and weight are similar:
- the length of the rocket without container is 1,32 m;
- case diameter - 106 mm;
- weight of the original modification - 15 kg;
- the weight of RBS 70 Mk 1 and later is 17 kg;
- combat load - not less than 1-1,1 kg.
The layout is determined by the control system. The nose houses a high-explosive fragmentation warhead, the center of the hull houses a solid-fuel motor with side nozzles, and the tail houses the control equipment.
Flight characteristics correspond to the level of the first version of Bolide:
- maximum speed - not less than 2 M;
- launch range - from 500 to 9000 m;
- target destruction altitude – up to 5 km.
SAMs use a laser-beam guidance system: the operator holds a laser beam on the target, and the missile flies along it. This design simplifies onboard equipment and significantly reduces the likelihood of guidance failure by the missile's means. EW, but it imposes an understandable limitation: the quality of shooting is determined by how confidently the operator keeps the target in sight throughout the entire trajectory.
Comparison of the warheads of the early modifications of the RBS 70 missiles (left) and the latest Bolide 2
According to Saab, the Bolide 2 uses modern components, which reduced the weight of the onboard electronics and integrated an inertial navigation unit into the control system, optimizing the flight path and increasing the probability of hitting a maneuvering target. The freed-up volume was used for the warhead: the manufacturer cites figures of a 50% increase in the explosive mass and a 40% increase in the number of tungsten fragments, while maintaining the same weight and dimensions of the missile. These figures are impressive, but this is a marketing comparison of "new versus previous generation" from the same manufacturer, without specifying a baseline (the explosive mass and number of fragments in the original Bolide are not provided in publicly available materials) and without independent measurements of the kill field. The actual increase in the probability of hitting a target depends not only on the explosive mass and the number of fragments, but also on their velocity, the angle of dispersion, and the characteristics of the target—no publicly available data on these parameters.
Bolide 2 is compatible with all versions of the RBS 70 NG – portable on a tripod and self-propelled systems based on them.
Сonclusion
Saab is expanding its ammunition lines for two infantry systems—anti-tank and anti-aircraft. For both the HEAT 758 and Bolide 2, the claimed performance gains are based almost exclusively on the manufacturer's own data; journalists at Janes and Army Technology documented part of the HEAT 758's field testing program, but without detailed measurements, while there are no public tests yet for the Bolide 2. A clear picture of the capabilities of both new weapons will emerge only after independent testing and combat use.
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