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Poland’s B‑2‑Style Loitering Munition: Gladius 2 (Warmate 30) Uses Turbojet and 30 kg Warhead

Poland’s B‑2‑Style Loitering Munition: Gladius 2 (Warmate 30) Uses Turbojet and 30 kg Warhead
Come cambiare il tema su Windows 11. | Credit: WB Group

WB Group has revealed Gladius 2 (Warmate 30), a turbojet‑powered loitering munition with a flying‑wing, B‑2‑style profile intended to reduce radar and thermal signatures. It carries an interchangeable 30 kg (66 lb) warhead and can be launched from containers or vehicle launchers. The system is designed to work inside WB Group’s Gladius reconnaissance‑strike ecosystem, coordinated via Topaz, and was developed from September 2022 onward. Poland signed major May 2026 procurement agreements for Warmate and FlyEye systems, but WB Group has not confirmed whether Gladius 2 is included.

Poland’s WB Group has unveiled Gladius 2 — also marketed as Warmate 30 — a new loitering munition that adopts a flattened flying‑wing profile reminiscent of the US B‑2 Spirit. The shape is intended to reduce radar and thermal signatures while the system is designed to operate as part of a larger reconnaissance‑strike ecosystem.

Design and Propulsion

Gladius 2 features a flying‑wing airframe, which helps scatter radar energy and reduces infrared exposure compared with conventional boxy fuselages. Unlike earlier electrically powered Warmate variants, this model is turbojet‑powered, giving it a faster dash toward targets and different endurance and performance trade‑offs than battery‑driven designs.

Payload and Launch Options

The munition carries an interchangeable 30 kg (66 lb) warhead and can be launched from either a standard shipping container or a dedicated vehicle launcher, increasing deployment flexibility for battlefield use.

Poland’s B‑2‑Style Loitering Munition: Gladius 2 (Warmate 30) Uses Turbojet and 30 kg Warhead
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Integration and Operational Role

WB Group designed Gladius 2 to operate within its Gladius reconnaissance‑strike system rather than as a purely standalone weapon. In that architecture, an FT‑5 Łoś reconnaissance drone locates targets and separate strike effectors—coordinated through the Topaz software platform—are assigned to engage them. This setup allows a single operator to identify a target with a recon asset and task a different strike munition to carry out the strike.

Development Timeline and Procurement Context

WB Group says development of this turbojet variant began in September 2022, with design choices influenced by lessons from the conflict in Ukraine. In May 2026, Poland’s Armaments Agency signed procurement agreements covering more than 400 Warmate systems, nearly 200 FlyEye reconnaissance drones and 12 Gladius fire modules; part of that financing came via the EU’s SAFE defence lending programme. WB Group has not confirmed whether Gladius 2 (Warmate 30) is included in those contracts, so the new model may still be a future offering rather than an immediately fielded system.

Performance Notes and Caveats

WB Group has previously described Warmate variants in payload categories of roughly 5 kg, 20 kg and 50 kg; the Warmate 30 sits between those sizes. Earlier Warmate iterations were quoted with ranges up to about 70 km (43 miles) for smaller variants and over 100 km (62 miles) for some electrically powered Gladius configurations. Those figures should not be assumed to apply to Gladius 2 until WB Group publishes official performance and test data for the turbojet‑powered variant.

Why The Flying‑Wing Shape?

The flying‑wing silhouette is a proven approach to reduce radar cross‑section and thermal signature. Adopting that form for a loitering munition is a pragmatic choice: it borrows established stealth benefits to improve survivability and reduce detectability on modern battlefields, especially as Poland rapidly expands its indigenous unmanned arsenal.

Bottom Line: Gladius 2 couples a stealthy flying‑wing form with turbojet propulsion and a 30 kg warhead to fill a mid‑weight strike niche. Its actual performance and operational availability await official WB Group test numbers and procurement confirmation.

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Poland’s B‑2‑Style Loitering Munition: Gladius 2 (Warmate 30) Uses Turbojet and 30 kg Warhead - CRBC News