Saab to upgrade Swedish ground based air defence

Saab will upgrade Sweden’s ground based air defence capabilities following the award of two new orders by the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV), with a total value of MSEK 600, announced on 18 February. Deliveries are scheduled to take place between 2014 and 2017.

According to Saab, the orders include delivery of both upgrades of existing units and new units with functions for ground based air defence Command, Control and Communication (C3), based on the Giraffe AMB multifunctional radar and C3 system. The systems feature command units which can be coordinated with Nato’s tactical data link (Link 16), communication systems, combat management terminals, as well as an upgrade of existing radar and command units.

In addition to offering interoperability with Nato units, Saab’s ground based air defence command and control function provides flexibility in terms of selection of effectors. It also includes functions for planning, evaluation and simulation, which support the effective use of all resources within a ground based air defence unit, to allow units up to battalion level to integrate and synchronise a range of sensors and weapon systems based on a common understanding of the situation. A warning function for incoming grenades and rockets is also included.

Micael Johansson, head of business area Electronic Defence Systems, said: ‘Saab will deliver the system integration and the integration of the command and control systems into the ground based anti-aircraft defence systems, based on our solid and well established Giraffe radar systems. This order strengthens Saab’s position in the field of ground based air defence, in Swedenas well as internationally.’