RBS 70 (Robotsystem 70) is a man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS) designed for anti-aircraft warfare 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, since 2000). It uses the RB 70 missile which is also in use in a number of other Swedish missile systems. History Before RBS 70 the mainstay of Swedish short range air defence was Robotsystem 69 (American Redeye ) and the Swedish Bofors m/48 AAA, Development of the Rbs 70 to supply the Swedish air defence with a low-cost, easy-to-use and effective short-range SAM system began in 1969 when Bofors AB was contracted, who decided to use a novel guidance system in form of a laser-beam riding missile co-developed with Laser Diode Laboratories. Further studies showed the need of a radar and an Identification friend or foe-system which were ordered from LM Ericsson and Svenska Aktiebolaget Trådlös Telegrafi (SATT) respectively in 1972. This became the first missile system to fully use computer simulated firing, with some 10 000 shots taken during development. IN 1975, the finished system went into series production, and Rbs 70 was taken into service in 1977. IN 1982, the missile was improved to mk I, while the MK II came in 1990. The fourth generation, the Mach 2 "BOLIDE" all target missile appeared in 2003 along with improvements of the IFF-system and the ability to add a BORC thermal imager. The auto-tracking Rbs 70 Next Generation with an integrated thermal imager came in 2011, now with a range of 9000 metres and 5000 metre height coverage. As a side development, the vehicle mounted all-weather Robotsystem 90 was in service from 1993 to 2004, then mothballed until it was reactivated in 2017. Design The RBS 70 is a Short-range Air Defense (SHORAD) laser guided 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 20 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