RBS 70 (Robotsystem 70) is a
man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) designed for
anti-aircraft warfare
Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based ...
in all climate zones and with little to no support from other forces. Originally designed and manufactured by the Swedish
defence firm of
Bofors Defence (now
Saab Bofors Dynamics
Saab Bofors Dynamics, located in Karlskoga and Linköping, Sweden, is a subsidiary of the Saab Group that specializes in military materiel such as missile systems and anti-tank systems.
Its corporate heritage goes back to Bofors, a hammer mill, ...
, since 2000). It uses the RB 70 missile which is also in use in a number of other Swedish
missile
In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocke ...
systems.
History
![Robot till RBS 70](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e8/Robot_till_RBS_70.jpg)
The RBS 70 was developed to supply the Swedish air defense with a low-cost, easy-to-use and effective short-range SAM system. Before RBS 70 the mainstay of Swedish air defense was American
MIM-23 Hawk systems (
RBS 77 and
RBS 97
RBS may refer to:
Organisations Banking
* The Royal Bank of Scotland, a retail banking subsidiary of NatWest Group
** RBS International, the offshore banking arm of NatWest Group
Education
* Regent's Business School
* Rotterdam Business School
...
"Swedish HAWK"), American
Redeye (
RBS 69) and the Swedish
Bofors m/48 AAA
AAA, Triple A, or Triple-A is a three-letter initialism or abbreviation which may refer to:
Airports
* Anaa Airport in French Polynesia (IATA airport code AAA)
* Logan County Airport (Illinois) (FAA airport code AAA)
Arts, entertainment, and me ...
.
Design
![Australian RBS-70 team during Exercise Talisman Sabre 21](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/76/Australian_RBS-70_team_during_Exercise_Talisman_Sabre_21.jpg)
The RBS 70 is a Short-range Air Defense (SHORAD)
laser guided
Laser guidance directs a robotics system to a target position by means of a laser beam. The laser guidance of a robot is accomplished by projecting a laser light, image processing and communication to improve the accuracy of guidance. The key ide ...
missile system.
Mk 1 and Mk 2 followed shortly and are the standard RBS 70 with a range of 5,000–6,000 m and a ceiling of 3,000 m. Currently, RBS 70 is operational in 18 customer countries, on all continents and in arctic, desert, and tropical environments.
In 2003 the "BOLIDE" upgrade system was introduced to the RBS 70. The BOLIDE missile is an RBS 70 Mk 2 upgrade that is faster (Mach 2 vs Mach 1.6), with a range up to and can reach an altitude of 6 km. Deliveries were initiated in 2005.
Latest upgrade
In 2011,
Saab Bofors Dynamics
Saab Bofors Dynamics, located in Karlskoga and Linköping, Sweden, is a subsidiary of the Saab Group that specializes in military materiel such as missile systems and anti-tank systems.
Its corporate heritage goes back to Bofors, a hammer mill, ...
(successor company of Bofors Defence) announced the introduction of the new RBS 70 New Generation (RBS 70 NG). The upgraded version included an improved sighting system capable of night vision and improved training and after-action review features.
Operational use
In 1990, the Royal Australian Navy embarked two RBS 70 units and Australian Army operators on board the fleet replenishment ship
HMAS ''Success'' when it deployed to the Persian Gulf in the lead-up to the first Gulf War in Kuwait.
In 1992, a
Venezuelan Army RBS 70 SAM is attributed with having shot down a rebel
OV-10 Bronco
The North American Rockwell OV-10 Bronco is an American twin-turboprop light attack and observation aircraft. It was developed in the 1960s as a special aircraft for counter-insurgency (COIN) combat, and one of its primary missions was as a f ...
during the
1992 Venezuelan coup d'état attempt
Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 ''Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since the ...
on November 27.
Iran used the RBS 70 system during the
Iran–Iraq War
The Iran–Iraq War was an armed conflict between Iran and Ba'athist Iraq, Iraq that lasted from September 1980 to August 1988. It began with the Iraqi invasion of Iran and lasted for almost eight years, until the acceptance of United Nations S ...
against Iraqi aircraft.
The Australian government has announced the Short Range Ground Based Air Defence in 2017. The plan is to find a replacement for the RBS-70. As of 2019 the
NASAMS
NASAMS (Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System, also known as the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System) is a distributed and networked short- to medium-range ground-based air defense system developed by Kongsberg Defence & Ae ...
is the chosen option. Defence Department has signed a contract with Raytheon Australia. Planned replacement of the RBS-70 is financial year 2022–23.
Operators
Current operators
*
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
*
Australia
*
Bahrain
Bahrain ( ; ; ar, البحرين, al-Bahrayn, locally ), officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, ' is an island country in Western Asia. It is situated on the Persian Gulf, and comprises a small archipelago made up of 50 natural islands and an ...
*
Brazil
Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...
RBS NG
*
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...
RBS 70 and RBS 70 NG
*
Finland
Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...
*
Indonesia
Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...
*
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...
*
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
*
Latvia
*
Lithuania
*
Mexican Army
The Mexican Army ( es, Ejército Mexicano) is the combined land and air branch and is the largest part of the Mexican Armed Forces; it is also known as the National Defense Army.
The Army is under the authority of the Secretariat of National ...
*
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 243 million people, and has the world's second-lar ...
: Assembled since 1988.
1500 in service with the
Pakistan Army.
*
*
Sweden
*
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is b ...
*
Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
*
United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia ( The Middle East). It is located at t ...
*
Venezuela
Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...
*
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
Former operators
*
**
Norwegian Army
The Norwegian Army ( no, Hæren) is the land warfare service branch of the Norwegian Armed Forces. The Army is the oldest of the Norwegian service branches, established as a modern military organization under the command of the King of Norway ...
(Sold to Lithuania
)
See also
*
Luftvärnsrobotvagn 701 (Lvrbv 701), a self-propelled vehicle mounted version of RBS 70
*
ASRAD-R
ASRAD-R (Advanced Short Range Air Defence System - RBS) is a vehicle-mounted short-range air defense system, designed by a joint German-Swedish effort between Rheinmetall and Saab Bofors Dynamics. The system is modular and can be mounted on almo ...
(Advanced Short Range Air Defence System – RBS)
*
9K38 Igla
*
VSHORAD (India)
The Very Short Range Air Defence System, or VSHORADS is a Man Portable Air Defence System (MANPAD) or man portable surface-to-air missile developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation's Research Centre Imarat (RCI), located at Hydera ...
*
Anza
*
Misagh-2
The Misagh-2 (Also known as Mithaq-2) is an Iranian man-portable infrared-guided surface-to-air missile
A surface-to-air missile (SAM), also known as a ground-to-air missile (GTAM) or surface-to-air guided weapon (SAGW), is a missile designed ...
*
KP-SAM Shingung
The KP-SAM ( ko, 신궁 "Shingung", hanja: 新弓) is a South Korean Man-portable air-defense system, shoulder-launched surface-to-air missile manufactured by LIG Nex1. It is marketed internationally as the Chiron.
History
The KP-SAM was creat ...
*
Qaem The Qaem (or Ghaem; ) refers to two completely separate Iranian weapons: an air-to-ground glide bomb and a surface-to-air missile. These two weapons are similarly sized and identically named, and are both developed from the Toophan missile, but a ...
*
Starstreak Surface-to Air Missile
*
FIM-92 Stinger
The FIM-92 Stinger is an American man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) that operates as an infrared homing surface-to-air missile (SAM). It can be adapted to fire from a wide variety of ground vehicles, and from helicopters as the Air-t ...
Surface-to-Air Missile
*
Mistral Surface-to-Air Missile
*
List of missiles
Below is a list of missiles, sorted alphabetically into large categories and subcategories by name and purpose.
Other missile lists
Types of missiles:
* Conventional guided missiles
** Air-to-air missile
** Air-to-surface missile
** Anti-rad ...
*
Starburst (missile)
References
External links
Official SAAB company page of RBS 70{{Webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131111221811/http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/missile/row/rbs70.htm , date=2013-11-11 at the
Federation of American Scientists (FAS) website
RBS 70 at GlobalSecurity.org
Surface-to-air missiles of Sweden
Guided missiles of Sweden
Military equipment introduced in the 1970s