Flexible, affordable – and a drone’s worst nightmare
A massive surge in drone use has created an uncomfortable hole in the layered air defence strategies of many nations. Saab’s new Nimbrix missile is designed to plug the gap, providing a scalable and economical solution for neutralising large numbers of UAVs.
Put yourself in the shoes of a deployed soldier whose squad has been tasked with defending an ammunition depot in wartime. Thanks to large surface-to-air missile batteries and fighter aircraft, your side has control of the skies. But defending against low-flying weaponised drones is another matter altogether. Your squad has two machine guns and a handful of expensive SHORAD missiles to defend yourselves.
Suddenly, your surveillance systems detects a swarm of 20 weaponised small drones coming in low and slow about three kilometres out. What’s your next step?
Up until recently, the only solution has been to use your SHORAD missiles – typically worth hundreds of thousands of dollars each – to take down as many of the drones as you can, and hope that your guns can manage the rest.
But a new counter-drone missile system develop by Saab is just about to rebalance this equation. Known as the Nimbrix, the system is based around a high-precision, short-range mini-missile with a price tag that isn’t too far off that of many of the drones it is designed to destroy. Small, lightweight and intended for use in batteries, it provides ground forces with an affordable and scalable way to rapidly neutralise large numbers of enemy drones. It can also be easily adapted for use on combat vehicles, remotely operated vehicles and vessels.
The rise of the drone
It’s hard to overstate the decisive role that drones are now playing in modern conflicts. In the war in Ukraine, thousands of UAVs are often in the air at any one time, with both Russia and Ukraine gearing up production to produce millions of units per year. The relatively low cost of drones (typically $2000 to $50,000) compared to other weapons means they can be used in extremely large numbers, quickly overwhelming traditional defences. While SHORAD missiles are extremely effective at destroying small drones at distances of up to a few kilometres, their use in defeating multiple UAV swarms is unsustainable, both from a cost and supply chain perspective. Even well-funded armies can’t afford to regularly send $400,000 missiles to destroy $2000 drones. Jammers, meanwhile, are proving increasingly ineffective due to the use of fibre optic cabling to connect pilots to first-person-view drones and also big advances in drone automation.
Introducing Nimbrix
Nimbrix is designed to meet these challenges. First-generation Nimbrix missiles weigh less than 3 kilograms and measure below 1 metres long, making them a highly agile and transportable C-UAS option. Each missile is equipped with a warhead and an infrared seeker, allowing it to locate and destroy drones with deadly precision. In a typical use case, deployed troops might be issued with a cassette of 9 or 12 Nimbrix missiles as part of their defences. This cassette is connected with a surveillance solution like a small radar and a hand-held interface, allowing troops to neutralise destroying Class 1 and Class 2 drones at distances of up to 2000 metres. A high-explosive fragmentation charge provides a hard kill in all weather conditions for somewhere between one tenth and one twentieth the cost of a SHORAD missile. Nimbrix can also be connected to more sophisticated and extensive command and control systems, as part of an overarching air defence strategy.
The beauty of Nimbrix is that it can address a swarm of drones as easily as a single UAV. Firing the missiles in a cassette in quick succession will rapidly decimate a moderately sized drone swarm. The affordability and high transportability of Nimbrix also means that it can be widely distributed among deployed troops, giving each squad their own drone defence capability. The system is easy to learn and operate, and the small size of the missiles and cassettes makes it relatively simple to convey along supply lines. Unlike, say, a pulsed energy weapon, Nimbrix has no need for a large power source.
Its components are either consumer or military off the shelf (COTS or MOTS), meaning manufacturing can easily be upscaled and moved to new locations.
Designed to evolve
Drone technology is rapidly evolving and Nimbrix is designed to do the same. The solution is the result of an accelerated product development program aimed at providing Saab customers with a reliable C-UAS solution now when they need it, rather than in the distant future. To create Nimbrix we have combined our advanced knowledge of ballistics and radar with partners able to contribute knowledge around smaller missiles and agile production. The missile’s airframe is 3D printed. While the first Nimbrix deliveries are scheduled to take place at the end of 2026, these are just the beginning. Future generations may feature enhancements including radar seekers and even greater range. Nimbrix’s modular design also allows it to remain effective if drone manufacturers innovate to avoid C-UAS strategies. While future UAVs may be designed to better evade jammers and survive an electromagnetic pulse or directed energy weapon, it’s unlikely future drones will be able to survive Nimbrix’s fragmentation charge and hard kill approach.
Multiple applications
One of Nimbrix’s greatest strengths is its flexibility and suitability for multiple applications. It could be used as point defence around a city, protecting civilians and infrastructure against drone attack. It could be used by deployed troops for self-defence or to protect crucial assets, such as power stations and ammunitions stories.
It could also be adapted for use on small or large combat vessels, adding an affordable and effective air defence layer. Nimbrix should not be thought of as a silver bullet for drone defence that makes other technologies obsolete. However, it provides a way to plug current gaps in air defence ensuring better coverage and a more effective way of destroying enemy drones.
More about Nimbrix
Keeping pace with the ever-evolving drone threat
If there’s one certainty about military drone technology, it’s that it will keep evolving. To manage future threats, counter-UAV solutions need to be able to evolve, too. Saab’s new Nimbrix solution is up to the challenge.
Nimbrix
Nimbrix is a reliable, ready-to-use counter-UAS missile designed to perform in all conditions. It offers effective and cost-efficient support, enabling swift and confident decision-making.