Sweden Arms Up Against Drones: Four Bofors 57Mk3 Guns Ordered From BAE
Sweden has ordered four Bofors 57Mk3 naval gun systems from BAE Systems, along with 57mm 3P ammunition, under a contract signed with the country’s Defence Materiel Administration, FMV. Deliveries are scheduled across 2028 and 2029.
The 57Mk3 already arms Sweden’s Visby and Gävle-class corvettes. Under the new order, several existing guns on these vessels will be replaced by the updated version. FMV’s ship systems unit manager, Olof Öhrström, said the weapons will strengthen the navy’s ability to respond to threats from both airborne and surface drones.
The gun is built for multirole use spanning air defense, surface warfare and naval gunfire support. It fires at roughly four rounds per second, carries 120 ready-to-fire rounds, and reaches targets out to 17 kilometers. Its 3P ammunition — pre-fragmented, programmable and proximity-fused — lets a single weapon switch its effect against different target types without changing barrels.
BAE Systems Bofors Marketing and Sales Director Stefan Löfström called the contract a reinforcement of the company’s long-standing role as a trusted partner to the Swedish armed forces and FMV. Neither BAE Systems nor FMV disclosed the contract’s value.
The order reflects a wider shift in naval gun procurement driven by the proliferation of cheap, swarming drones. Mid-caliber naval guns, once designed primarily to counter larger ships or aircraft, are increasingly valued as a cost-effective defensive layer against small, maneuverable unmanned threats — a role in which missile interceptors are often too expensive to use routinely.
Sweden’s move fits into broader naval modernization on NATO’s northern flank. Heightened military activity and hybrid-threat concerns in the Baltic Sea region have made updating corvette weapon systems a priority for Stockholm. The Visby class is known for a composite hull designed to minimize radar cross-section; upgrading its main gun lets the platform retain that stealth advantage while adding modern defensive capability.
Bofors’ 57mm gun family is fielded on a wide range of navies worldwide, including Canada’s Halifax-class frigates. That global footprint gives operators economies of scale on spare parts and ammunition while supporting shared logistics among NATO members using the same weapon.
According to FMV, the contract is part of an ongoing program to modernize Sweden’s existing fleet rather than procure new hulls. Once the 2028-2029 deliveries are complete, the updated guns will enter service aboard the Visby and Gävle-class corvettes.
The order illustrates how European navies are treating gun-based close-in defense as complementary to missile systems rather than obsolete, particularly as drone threats multiply across the Baltic and beyond. For Visby and Gävle crews, the practical outcome is a gun that can be re-tasked round to round, switching from an anti-surface fire mission to counter-drone engagement without a maintenance stop between the two.
Sources
BAE Systems, “BAE Systems Awarded 57Mk3 Naval Gun and 3P Ammunition Contract by Sweden,” https://www.baesystems.com/en/article/bae-systems-awarded-57mk3-naval-gun-and-3p-ammunition-contract-by-sweden — used for contract and product details. FMV (Försvarets materielverk), “FMV beställer fartygskanoner och ammunition,” https://www.fmv.se/aktuellt–press/aktuella-handelser/fmv-bestaller-fartygskanoner-och-ammunition/ — used for official Swedish government confirmation and quotes.
