The Quest for Relevant Air Power

swedish Air Force │ 319
ously upgraded. The transport unit’s engagement in the air bridge to
Sarajevo was a major catalyst for an upgrade with self-protection
suites. After the Swedish C-130 had been pulled out of Croatia in
1992, the upgrades were implemented without any further delay.
Politicians recognised that force protection in real operations was of
the highest importance, and the required budget was approved immediately.
208 A major midlife update was scheduled for 2007, with
the SwAF participating in a major USAF C-130 modernisation programme.
The upgrade programme was supposed to focus primarily
upon aircraft avionics. 209 Moreover, one C-130 Hercules was converted
into an air-to-air refuelling aircraft in 2004 so that Gripen
pilots can train in air-to-air refuelling procedures. 210
As the lead nation of the NBG, Sweden is responsible for intertheatre
deployment. Despite continuous upgrades of the Swedish
C-130 fleet, these aircraft are not to be used for intertheatre airlift
but for providing intratheatre airlift. 211 Since the buildup of an autonomous
strategic airlift capability would go beyond Sweden’s
national resources, Sweden has been engaging in two multinational
NATO and EU projects. On 23 March 2006, Sweden became
a member of the Strategic Airlift Interim Solution, and it is
also participating in NATO’s Strategic Airlift Capability, centred
on the shared ownership of C-17 Globemasters. Sweden’s role in
the latter is particularly prominent, as the SwAF provides the
deputy commander for the multinational military structure operating
the C-17s. 212 (Both initiatives were examined in chap. 2.)
Insufficient power projection capabilities also became apparent
against the backdrop of the establishment of the SwAF’s rapid reaction
units. Though all necessary support functions were contained
within the unit, SWAFRAP JAS 39 was dependent upon
lead nation support in deployed operations, especially when operating
from so-called bare bases. 213
The most important Swedish rotary-wing programme of the
post–Cold War era is the acquisition of 18 Eurocopter NH90s. 214
In the late 1990s, the helicopters from the three services were
united in the Armed Forces Helicopter Wing. The wing is composed
of a broad array of helicopters, from transport, search and
rescue, anti-submarine warfare, and liaison to training helicopters. 215
The streamlining of the helicopter force avoids unnecessary redundancies
between the services and hence is a cost-saving factor.