Introducing Nimbrix, Saab’s new counter-drone solution

Saab has released initial details of Nimbrix, a new counter-uncrewed aerial systems (C-UAS) missile designed to provide cost-effective defence against drones and drone swarms. The missile will be presented at the DSEI UK exhibition from the 9-12 September, the company explained in an August 28 press release. 

“Nimbrix is our answer to the unmanned aerial threats which have escalated in the last few years. It is cost-effective, which is critical given the proliferation of UASs on the battlefield,” Stefan Öberg, head of Saab Missile Systems explains. Already, the company is in talks with customers and anticipates the first deliveries in 2026. 

It is worth noting that the proliferation of drones worth shooting down with missiles started some years before Ukraine. The Houthi and Iranian attacks against Saudi ARAMCO oil facilities in 2019 are one example, and the year before that, Syrian militants hit the Russian Khmeimim air base with relatively large drones carrying bombs. Ukraine, and Russia’s use of Shahed/Gerans as well as the impact that systems like the Orlan-10 can have on frontline units have thrown this into sharp relief, however. Few if any European states have a good answer to large waves of one-way attack drones like the Shahed, and most would probably resort to mobilising their air forces to shoot them down. 

The Nimbrix missiles are part of Saab’s answer to this threat landscape. It will have a range of 5 km and an active seeker enabling it to find and track its target. Broadly speaking, air defence missiles are either commanded onto the target by systems on the ground, or fired onto an interception trajectory and allowed to complete the engagement using an onboard seeker. This might be an electro-optical or infrared seeker working on the visible or thermal signature of the target, or a radar seeker that responds to radar energy bouncing back off the target. 

Saab told journalists that the Nimbrix will carry an infrared seeker, but a radio frequency (i.e., radar) seeker could be fitted if required. Ukrainian sources have indicated that visual detection and recognition is one of the more effective means of tracking and engaging Geran swarms. Moreover, radar seekers are very rarely a “cost-effective solution.”

Nimbrix is armed with an explosive warhead, which “can effectively engage and defeat UAS swarms using an air-burst mode,” the press release states. Again, there are a few different methods for air defence interception. One is known as kinetic interception, where the air defence missile literally just flies into the target. Their combined speed leads to the target being destroyed, but this is typically reserved for ballistic missiles. For explosive warheads it is common to fit a proximity fuze, which uses a laser or radar to detect the target and detonate the warhead at an optimal moment to cause the desired spread of fragmentation and explosive effects. 

However, defeating a swarm-which would at best be a cluster of drones within easy reach of each other-suggests that the missile would be programmed upon launch to detonate within the cluster or something similar. Proximity fuzes for cannon ammunition have been found to be more effective than programmable ammunition because it enables the round to respond to the drone’s position, rather than where the drone was when the round was fired. 

In terms of platform fit, Nimbrix “operates as a ground-based system and can be operated independently or as part of a larger air defence system. With flexible mounting options to fit different customer requirements.” This includes mounting on different vehicles and Saab states that the cost of the missile is designed to maximise the deployed numbers and provide greater coverage. 

Defining cost-effectiveness

It’s rare for defence manufacturers to reveal the price of a system or weapon, in part because prices fluctuate based upon demand and the supply chain. But, it is possible to define what a cost-effective solution might currently be. For example, the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) is a laser-guided rocket designed to be fired from aircraft including larger drones, primarily to defeat other drones. A US DoD contract in 2018 for 10,185 APKWS II, which are upgrades of existing 2.75 inch rockets, was valued at $224.3 million (approx £168.34 million/€189.87 million in 2018), which gives an indicative price per rocket of $22,000, which is around £16,000/€18,600, based on average exchange rates in 2018. 

At the upper end of the “cost-effective” range is the Israeli Iron Dome, a system designed specifically to intercept rockets that fly on a predictable ballistic trajectory. The Institute for National Security Studies, an Israeli think-tank, indicated that each Tamir interceptor fired by Iron Dome cost between $40,000-$50,000 in 2021. However, the most affordable solution at present is probably a cannon-based interception. This is reflected in a number of recent short-range air defence solutions like the RiWP from Moog, which was fitted with a 30×173 mm cannon and offered to the UK, or the Condor vehicle from FFG, developed to provide a blend of air defence and fire support. Cannons firing proximity-fuzed or air-bursting munitions are able to achieve a successful kill for around $1,000 per drone, assuming three shots of 30 mm ammunition per target. They generally offer good magazine depth, enabling them to support prolonged defensive scenarios, but become less effective as target altitude, speed, and manoeuvrability increase. 

Directed energy weapons also look set to change the C-UAS landscape. Systems like the US Army’s IFPC-HPM, which is sold under the name Leonidas, uses microwave energy to damage the electronics inside small drones. It can fire a concentrated beam or a cone of energy to bring down swarms if necessary. EOS also secured a recent contract with a European customer for its High Energy Laser weapon, which can engage drones at a cost of a few dollars per shot. High energy weapons will continue to be refined and improved, leading to more portable and capable systems. However, they are limited in terms of range and require a lot of power. This is not necessarily a deal-breaker, most things in defence need a lot of power, but it does limit where they can be deployed and for how long.

Irrespective of how Nimbrix works, it is encouraging to see European manufacturers developing solutions to the challenges of drones. If you are attending DSEI UK this year, Saab will be presenting the Nimbrix at its stand, N9-105. 

Calibre comment

Cost-effectiveness is only one part of the air defence equation. We now have a significant body of evidence showing that magazine depth is perhaps the most important feature of a layered air defence. It is not enough to simply withstand the first few days of strikes, a country must be able to weather a prolonged period of complex and multi-faceted strikes. This requires different interceptors at different price ranges, but above all it requires the industrial resilience to build them in their hundreds or thousands. Saab has extensive experience manufacturing large quantities of advanced and capable missiles including the Carl Gustaf family of anti-armour weapons, IRIS-T, and Meteor, which it is involved in.

By Sam Cranny-Evans, published on August 28, 2025. Credit for the lead image is Saab.