Swedish Road Trip!

Sweden has taken a very different stance when it comes to the global coronavirus pandemic and in April the Swedish Air Force participated in a road operations exercise to demonstrate how it can maintain readiness even in times of great stress.

REPORT: Jerry Gunner

Swedish Road Trip [Tim Jansson] #1
A JAS 39 Gripen C gets airborne from a small stretch of road during the exercise in April. All photos Tim Janssen

As Israel demonstrated in the 1967 Six-Day War, judiciously timed strategic airstrikes can almost eliminate an enemy’s air power in one fell swoop. Only so much can be done to protect an air force on the ground. Smart weapons can be targeted to land on each and every hangar, fuel facility and hardened aircraft shelter on any airfield in the world. Aircraft can be camouflaged and hidden away in secluded areas on a base, but they will not be able to launch if the runways have been put out of action. There is almost no hiding place on the ground — not on airfields anyway.

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