BAE Systems Bofors launched its next-generation 40 mm anti-aircraft system, the Tridon Mk2, at Eurosatory 2024, held in Paris from 17 to 21 June.
The Tridon Mk2 essentially takes the proven technology of the BAE Systems Bofors 40 Mk4 40 mm L70 naval gun system and mounts it on a high-mobility truck (at Eurosatory 2024 a Scania 6×6 was used) to provide a mobile air defence solution that can fill in the air defence gaps behind more expensive surface-to-air missile systems.
The system, which has an effective range of up to 12 km (depending on the target, selected ammunition, sensor suite and surrounding terrain), can fire Bofors’ 3P programmable ammunition, which is designed to defeat a wide range of threats, most obviously hostile unmanned aerial vehicles and other airborne threats by using airburst rounds, but also land-based targets such as armoured vehicles, in which case armour-piercing rounds could be fired.
The Bofors 40 Mk4 fires at a rate of 300 rounds per minute and holds 100 rounds: 30 rounds ready to fire in a primary magazine and an additional 70 rounds in a secondary magazine. Different ammunition types can be mixed into the same salvo if required.
“It’s a very flexible system and very modular,” Stefan Löfström, director of marketing and sales for BAE Systems Bofors, told ESD at Eurosatory on 19 June. “In this case it’s integrated to a Scania 6×6 military logistic truck, but we’re also looking to integrate other types of vehicles. It could be any type of standard truck, but we’re also looking to integrate it on a BvS10 tracked all-terrain vehicle from BAE Systems.”
Löfström also noted that, using a hook-lift system, the Tridon Mk2 system could be deployed on a pallet, for example to provide a static air defence capability for high-value ground installations or critical infrastructure.
Launched as a private venture, the Tridon Mk2 has received “tremendous traction” and “a lot of interest” at Eurostory, according to Löfström, who added, “I think we’re spot on for what the market is looking for in terms of cost-effective, short-range air defence solutions.”