What is the CV90 Mk IV? BAE Systems’ Tracked Infantry Fighting Vehicle, Explained
The CV90 — Combat Vehicle 90 in English, Stridsfordon 90 in Swedish — is a family of tracked infantry fighting vehicles (IFVs) originally developed by Hägglunds (Sweden) and now produced by BAE Systems Hägglunds. First entering Swedish service in 1993 to replace the Pansarbandvagn 302, the CV90 has been continuously evolved across five major Mark levels. With more than 1,800 vehicles delivered to ten European armies and another 1,000+ on order as of 2026 — including the largest IFV procurements in modern Czech, Slovak and Dutch history — the CV90 has become the consensus European IFV of the post-Cold-War era.
Key facts at a glance
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Type | Tracked infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) |
| Manufacturer | BAE Systems Hägglunds (Sweden) |
| In service | 1993 — present |
| Crew + passengers | 3 crew + 6 dismounts (Mk IV); 3 + 8 (Mk I/II) |
| Combat weight | 26 t (Mk 0) — 37 t (Mk IV with applique armor) |
| Length | 6.55 m (Mk IV) |
| Width | 3.19 m |
| Main armament | 30 mm Bushmaster II Mk 44 (Norway, Netherlands, Estonia, Slovakia); 35 mm Bushmaster III (Swiss option); 40 mm Bofors L/70 (Sweden, Finland, Denmark, Norway) |
| Engine | Scania DSI16 V8 turbo-diesel, 810 hp (Mk IV) |
| Max road speed | 70 km/h |
| Range | 600 km |
| Operators | Sweden, Norway, Finland, Denmark, Netherlands, Switzerland, Estonia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine |
| Pending operators | Latvia (selected), Slovakia (selected 2022) |
| Unit cost | ~ USD 7 million (Mk I); ~ USD 13–15 million (Mk IV with APS and digital backbone) |
Variants
| Variant | Year | Key feature |
|---|---|---|
| Mk 0 (Strf 9040) | 1993 | Original Swedish variant; 40 mm Bofors gun |
| Mk I | 1998 | Norway export |
| Mk II | 2001 | Switzerland export (CV9030CH); 30 mm Bushmaster II |
| Mk III | 2007 | Netherlands, Denmark export; uprated armor and engine |
| Mk IV | 2019 | Digital backbone, Iron Fist APS, 810 hp engine, vehicle-level autonomy hooks |
| CV90 MkIV with Elbit Iron Fist APS | 2024 | First production IFV with full hard-kill APS in Dutch + Slovak service |
| CV90120-T | Prototype | Light-tank variant with 120 mm gun on CV90 chassis (Slovenia, Czech evaluation) |
Combat record
- 1995–1999 — Bosnia. Swedish IFOR / SFOR deployment; first combat-zone use.
- 2003–2014 — Afghanistan. Norwegian, Danish, Swedish and Dutch CV90s saw heavy combat in Helmand and Faryab; particularly noted for survivability against IEDs and Taliban RPG attacks. One Norwegian CV90 hit by a 12 kg IED in 2008 had all crew survive.
- 2011–2014 — Libya, Mali. Limited deployments.
- 2023–present — Ukraine. Sweden donated 50 CV9040C variants to Ukraine. Ukrainian crews praised the 40 mm gun’s lethality and the vehicle’s IED-survivable hull. Verified losses include several to ATGM hits and one to a precision artillery strike; loss rates are reported as significantly lower than CV9040’s earlier expected wartime attrition assumptions.
Why armies pick the CV90
Industry observers cite three CV90 advantages in recent competitions:
- Combat-proven Nordic engineering. The CV90 has the highest combat-tested record of any current Western IFV after Afghanistan and Ukraine.
- Open digital backbone. Mk IV’s vehicle-electronics architecture is genuinely open, accommodating customer-specific weapon stations, ATGM launchers and ISR payloads.
- Industrial offsets. BAE Systems Hägglunds has consistently delivered local assembly partnerships — with HDT Slovakia (Slovakia), Tatra Defence Vehicle (Czechia), VDL (Netherlands), Lattecoere (Latvia).
Operators
| Country | Quantity | Variant |
|---|---|---|
| Sweden | 549 | Strf 9040, Mk B / C |
| Norway | 144 | Mk I + Mk III |
| Finland | 102 | Mk II |
| Denmark | 45 | Mk III + Mk IIIM |
| Netherlands | 193 | CV9035NL Mk III (upgrading to Mk IV) |
| Switzerland | 186 | CV9030CH Mk II |
| Estonia | 44 | Mk I + Mk II ex-Dutch |
| Czech Republic | 246 | CV9030CZ Mk IV (2023 contract) |
| Slovakia | 152 | CV9035SK Mk IV (2022 selection) |
| Ukraine | 50 | Donated Strf 9040C (2023) |
CV90 vs. its peers
| CV90 Mk IV | Lynx KF41 | ASCOD 2 | Bradley M2A4 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight | 37 t | 44 t | 42 t | 34 t |
| Main gun | 30/35/40 mm | 30 mm Mk 30-2/ABM | 30 mm MK44 | 25 mm M242 Bushmaster |
| Dismounts | 6 | 6–9 | 8 | 7 |
| APS | Iron Fist Light | StrikeShield (Iron Fist) | None standard | Iron Fist (planned) |
| Combat-proven | Afghanistan, Ukraine | No | No (Ajax UK delays) | Iraq, Ukraine |
| Unit cost | ~ USD 13M | ~ USD 15M | ~ USD 12M | ~ USD 4M |
The future: CV90 Mk V and uncrewed turret
BAE Systems Hägglunds is currently developing the CV90 Mk V: hybrid-electric drive, a new digital fire-control suite designed for manned-unmanned teaming with ground robotics, and as an option an unmanned 30 mm or 50 mm turret derived from the company’s research into the U.S. Army XM30 program. First Mk V prototype is expected in 2027.
Why the CV90 matters
The CV90 has won every major European IFV competition since 2022. With more than 1,000 vehicles on order between 2022 and 2026 — and combat experience accumulating in Ukraine — the platform is securing its position as the European tracked IFV benchmark for the rest of the decade. Hägglunds’ Örnsköldsvik facility is producing at twice the historical rate to clear the backlog.
