Sweden

Abstract

The production of aircraft and tanks during Second World War suffered considerable delays because of Sweden’s dependence on foreign designs and technology for these products. During the Second World War, Sweden had sought to build up an armaments industry which was technically advanced and which could, independent of the outside world, provide the country with well-equipped armed forces. The government wanted Sweden to have an arms industry and this meant that weapons had to be exported in order for the Swedish arms industry to maintain the desired size and level of technical competence. Defence orders have been of greatest value for the Swedish economy in terms of developing a research and development (R&D) capacity. The Swedish armed forces did not take into account the possible effects of spin-off from military R&D when considering where to buy equipment. In the mid-1970s, the Swedish aircraft industry consisted essentially of nine privately owned companies and a few state-owned concerns.