Swedish Army Buys 15,000 M4A1 Carbines

The Swedish Defense Materiel Administration (FMV) currently has more than 100 procurement projects underway, and Sweden is taking significant steps to modernize its military capabilities. As frequent readers of TFB already know, one of these projects is to procure a new family of man-portable weapons. The project includes automatic carbines, sharpshooting and sniper weapons, as well as new machine guns, grenade launchers and 12.7-millimeter automatic rifles. The aging Ak 5 standard issue carbine (a Swedish version of the FN FNC) has been in use since the 1980s and urgently needs replacing.

Sweden’s New Service Rifle @ TFB:

Sweden Signs Agreement For More Sako AK 24 Rifles POTD: The Swedish Automatkarbin 24 Full-Auto Suppressed POTD: Sweden’s New Automatic Carbine 24

The first weapon in the project, the AK 24 (caliber 5.56 NATO) is now being delivered and field-tested. However, Sako of Finland is not able to deliver enough weapons soon enough to cover the needs. That’s why the Swedish Army will purchase a total of 15,000 M4A1 carbines directly from the U.S. Army, to be used as an interim solution, according to Swedish media. According to several recent news articles in the Swedish press, the deal is described as “urgent”. However, for anyone aware of the situation, and who follows the official channels, it’s been openly described that an interim solution will be needed. This was also mentioned in a TFB article this summer.

The M4A1 interim weapons will be delivered directly from the U.S. Army’s warehouse. The purchase consists of 15,000 Colt M4A1 automatic carbines to be used by anyone from conscripts to full-time employed soldiers and officers, as well as on missions abroad, for example in Latvia. The price for the M4A1s has not been revealed.

The M4A1 is or has been used by Armies in over 70 countries, and now Sweden can be added to the list. Swedish Special Forces also use the LWRCI M6-IC.