Air Defence in Northern Europe
Air Defence in Northern EuropeAIRPOWER AFTER WORLD WAR II
Sweden
After the massive build-up during World War II, Flygvapnet started its modernization program fairly soon, with the aim of moving into the jet age. Its first jet aircraft, a De Havilland Vampire J 28, was purchased in 1946, and the first Swedish-built jet plane, the SAAB J 29 Tunnan, was tested in autumn 1948 and later became a standard aircraft for fighter, attack and reconnaissance units in the 1950s.16
In 1951 the service comprised 11 fighter wings with aircraft such as the J 30 Mosquito, J 22, J 26 Mustang, J 28A and B Vampire, J 21A-2 and R types, 4 attack wings with A 21, B 18B and T 18B, and two reconnaissance wings equipped with S 18A, S 31 Spitfire and J 26 Mustang.17
A new jet attack plane, the A 32 Lansen, was introduced in 1952, and three years later a jet fighter, the J 35 A Draken. The number of wings was the same in 1955 as in 1951, but the I 29 Tunnan was already well represented in the units. Development of the air surveillance and control system was extended in the 1950s via tests with PJ-21, PS-14 and PH-13 radar installations to reach the Stril-50 system, which has formed the basis for later modernization. The base system, including the road bases also started to be extended in the 1950s.16
Six fighter wings were equipped with J 29 Tunnan aircraft by 1960, two with J 32B Lansen, two with J 34 Hawker Hunter, 120 of which had been purchased from Great Britain, and one with J 35A Draken. All four attack wings were equipped with the A 32 Lansen type. The two reconnaissance wings had S 29C Tunnans and S 32C Lansens.17 New long range radar systems, PS-08, had already been bought from Great Britain in the mid1950s, and the Stril-50 was modified to the Stril-60, with increased automatization, in the 1960s.29
The first signs of a need to reduce the organization for reasons of economy appeared in the late 1960s. Thus F9 at Säve was closed down on 30 June 1969, and the same happened to F2, F3 and F8 in 1974. Next followed F11 and F12, while F14 together with F18 were reorganized as a non-combat unit.16
A new aircraft type, the 37 Viggen, was introduced by SAAB on 8 February 1967 and eventually made its way into the units during the 1970s.17 A new combined light attack and trainer aircraft, the B3LA, was in the development plans in the 1970s but the project was later abandoned.
By the 1980s the number of wings had dropped to a half of that of the early sixties. F21 in Luleå had JA 37 and S37 Viggens, F4 in Östersund JA37 Viggens, F13 in Linköping JA37 and S37 Viggens, F16 in Uppsala JA37 Viggens and J35F Drakens, F10 in Ängelholm J35F Drakens, F17 Ronneby JA37 Viggens, F6 in Karlsborg AJ37 Viggens, F7 in Såtenäs AJ37 Viggens and F15 in Söderhamn AJ37 and SK37 Viggens. There were about 220 fighters, about 150 attack aircraft, including the light attack aircraft SK60, and about 50 reconnaissance planes.29 A decision to build a new aircraft, the Saab JAS 39 Gripen, was made in the early 1980s, to be introduced in the early 1990s.36
The question of the position of the anti-aircraft artillery in the defence forces was taken up immediately after the war. There were four main objects of debate:30
- the position of anti-aircraft artillery as a type of arms in the army
- transfer of the anti-aircraft artillery to the air force
- transfer of air surveillance from the army to the air force
- transfer of the coast artillery's anti-aircraft artillery to army units.
In 1947 an air defence committee pointed to a number of weaknesses in air defence and suggested that fighter units, army anti-aircraft artillery and air surveillance should be united as an independent air defence branch. The Chief of Flygvapnet wanted to transfer the anti-aircraft artillery to the air force, and the Chief of the Army wanted it to stay in the army. The idea of a new branch was abandoned, as were changes in the basic organizational structure, but air surveillance was transferred from the army anti-aircraft artillery to the air force in 1948.30
The peace-time organization of the anti-aircraft artillery in 1949 comprised three regiments and four other antiaircraft groups. Lv (Luftvärn) 2 in Linköping was closed down in 1958 and Lv1 in Karlsborg the next year. The number of wartime units remained at about 300.30
The anti-aircraft artillery in the late 1940s had 26 fire control radars, 158 central calculators of the Papello, Gamma and Haze type, and 172 searchlights. The new radar systems, PE-07/R and PS-23/R, had been bought from Great Britain, and the next steps were Stril-50 and Stril60.l8
A new 40 mm gun with central calculator and radar was introduced in 1948, and a new 57 mm automatic cannon was taken into use in 1954. An anti-aircraft tank with two 40 mrn guns and fire control radar was developed in 1960s. The missile era started in 1961 with the British Bloodhound II, called the Rb 68. The American Hawk system, called the Rb 367 at first and later the Rb 67 was supplied in 1962.
The Hawk system was modernized in 1977 and the name changed to Rb 77. The close range missile question was solved by purchasing Redeye shoulder missiles in 1969.
Work was started in 1967 on a Swedish design, the Rbs 70, and the first test units were delivered in 1974. A target acquisition radar PS-70/R was part of the development of this system.18
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