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Swedish Combat Boats Loaned Overseas

(Source: Thelocal.se; issued Oct. 11, 2010)
A Swedish Combat Boat 90 suspended from the davits of the Dutch navy’s amphibious ship Johan De Witt during a recent evaluation by the Dutch Marines. (Swedish Defence Forces photo)

Two Swedish Combat Boat 90s (StridsBåt 90, CB 90) have been loaned to the UK and the Netherlands for six months.

The boats have been rebuilt so that they can be taken aboard major warships. The possibility of military cooperation with the two countries is expected to increase as a result of the loan.

"It is a way for Sweden to be able to support military operations," Kristofer Gattberg, project manager at the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (Forsvaretsmaterielverk, FMV), told the TT news agency.

FMV has permitted the building of fast military assault craft, in the case the CB90 model. They can now be hoisted on board larger British and Dutch warships, required for departure to international efforts around the world.

Over the next six months, the boats will be tested by the British and Dutch navies.

British and Dutch personnel, including divers, have already received training on a CB90 in Sweden. The boats are suitable for coastal operations and military purposes, such as for disasters or pirate and terrorist threats. They can be used to transport people, medical care, command location and a complete weapons system.

For Dockstavarvet, a shipyard that builds boats, the tests represent the opening up of possible export markets. Previously, the CB90 model has been exported to Mexico, Malaysia, Norway and Greece and is used for military or Coast Guard purposes. (ends)

A Boost for Combat Boat

The development of the Dutch Navy has reached a further step with regard to combat boats. Recently, trials were carried out to lift combat boats with the small boat davits of the Dutch navy’s amphibious warfare ship Johan de Witt. The exercises are called for Multinational Operational Experimentation, MOE.

The combat boats have a wide range of missions, from troop transports to ambulance, command and control platform and, at least for the Swedish armed forces, direct combat.

Other nations have a long history of growing interest in the Swedish combat boat concept. Several maritime nations, including Britain and the Netherlands, have seconded to Sweden’s Marine Regiment at various times in order to learn both how to run and how to manage the entire combat boat system.

Great interest

Earlier CB90 docking exercises with Johan de Witt’s sister ship, Rotterdam, most recently in Sweden, have been highly successful. However, it is important that the whole concept be evaluated as there is a strong interest in acquiring combat boats for the Dutch Navy. In addition to docking, the mother ship could also transport the CB90s over great distances. The idea is for the CB90 combat boat to replace the somewhat outdated Dutch landing craft.

Impressed

The trials with the combat boats in the Netherlands were followed with great interest by General A. G van Ede, who is Deputy Naval Commander of the Netherlands. “I am very impressed with the boat's combat ability and flexibility, he said.

From a Dutch perspective, there is only one drawback to the CB90 combat boat compared to their current landing craft: there is no possibility of transporting vehicles to because of the CB90’s relatively small size. Otherwise, CB90 is far superior.

Dutch divers also conducted tests of the CB90 to see if it can serve as a diving platform, and they were also very pleased with the results.

These completed tests will provide more opportunities for joint actions between Sweden and the Netherlands, whose amphibious battalions will thus take another major step towards interoperability. (ends)

UK, Holland Test Swedish Combat Boats

The Swedish Defence Material Administration have loaned out two combat ships to Great Britain and the Netherlands for their marines to try out.

News agency TT reports that cooperation among the countries looks like it will increase. "It's a way for Sweden to be able to support in military operations," says Kristofer Gattberg, a project leader for the Material Administration.

The combat ships can be hoisted aboard larger battle ships and deployed during military operations, emergencies, and terrorist or pirate threats. Depending on the situation, the ships can be used to transport people or medical supplies. Or, they can be used as a weapons system, reports news agency TT.

The ships' manufacturer says wider export is possible. Already, this model has been exported to Mexico, Malaysia, Norway and Greece for use in guarding the coast or carrying out military operations.

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