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Sweden Expands Tactical Mobility with New IRB Bridge Systems from GDELS.
In a security environment marked by the increasing need for mobility, resilience, and interoperability, Sweden is reinforcing its ability to maneuver across natural obstacles by expanding its fleet of tactical bridging systems. On April 23, 2025, General Dynamics European Land Systems – Bridge Systems (GDELS-BS) announced the signing of a new contract with the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) for the supply of additional Improved Ribbon Bridge (IRB) systems. This latest order is part of a broader effort initiated in June 2022 to upgrade the Swedish Army’s wet-gap crossing capabilities in line with NATO standards and the evolving operational requirements of European armed forces.
Sweden’s decision to invest in the IRB aligns with its broader objective of enhancing the tactical flexibility and autonomy of its ground forces, especially in a geography characterized by thousands of rivers, lakes, and wetlands (Picture source: GDELS)
The IRB is a modular floating bridge system designed to provide rapid and reliable wet-gap crossing support in high-tempo operations. It can be configured either as a full-length floating bridge or assembled as a multi-bay ferry, depending on the terrain, the width of the obstacle, and the mission profile. With a Military Load Classification (MLC) of 80 for tracked vehicles and 96 for wheeled platforms, the IRB can support the full spectrum of NATO heavy vehicles, including the Leopard 2A7, M1A2 Abrams, Challenger 2, and future main battle tanks. Its ability to perform in strong currents and under varied climate conditions makes it suitable for both peacetime logistics missions and high-intensity conflict scenarios.
Sweden’s decision to invest in the IRB aligns with its broader objective of enhancing the tactical flexibility and autonomy of its ground forces, especially in a geography characterized by thousands of rivers, lakes, and wetlands. In such an environment, the ability to project combat power across water obstacles without relying on fixed infrastructure is crucial. The IRB’s modularity allows units to rapidly deploy, recover, and redeploy bridge segments, thereby maintaining momentum and avoiding chokepoints or predictable routes vulnerable to interdiction. Additionally, the IRB's reduced maintenance requirements and long-term storage suitability contribute to overall operational readiness and cost-efficiency.
Beyond its performance in national defense scenarios, the IRB offers significant advantages in multinational operations. It is fully interoperable with legacy bridging systems such as the Standard Ribbon Bridge (SRB) and the Floating Support Bridge (FSB), still in use by several NATO members. More importantly, the IRB can be seamlessly coupled with the M3 amphibious bridging and ferrying system, which is also operated by Sweden. The M3, capable of crossing wet gaps up to 400 meters wide, was first delivered to the Swedish Armed Forces in late 2024. Together, these systems form a coherent and versatile bridging capability that allows Swedish forces to operate jointly with allied militaries using compatible procedures, training, and logistics chains.
Interoperability has been a driving factor in Sweden’s defense modernization choices. The IRB system has a strong track record in coalition environments, having been deployed by U.S. and German forces during NATO’s Anakonda 2016 exercise in Poland, where it demonstrated full compatibility with Dutch SRB systems. It has also been battle-proven in operational theaters such as Iraq, where U.S. forces relied on it for sustaining mobility across rivers and canals under combat conditions. The platform’s tactical deployability is further enhanced by its compatibility with multiple transport modes, including military trucks, railway flatbeds, and CH-47 Chinook helicopters or similar heavy-lift aircraft.
The latest order for additional IRB systems also reflects Sweden’s increasing involvement in collective defense planning. As a newly ratified NATO member, Sweden is accelerating its efforts to integrate into allied command structures and force generation frameworks. Tactical bridging systems like the IRB not only improve Sweden’s national readiness but also enable it to contribute effectively to alliance-wide mobility operations, whether in defensive scenarios on the eastern flank or during multinational training deployments.
By reinforcing its engineering corps with additional IRBs, Sweden is securing its capacity to conduct rapid, autonomous wet-gap crossings and contribute to joint force projection. The system's standardization across NATO, combined with its robust performance record, ensures that Swedish forces will be able to cooperate seamlessly with those of Germany, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, and the United States, all of which operate similar or compatible bridging equipment.
This acquisition underscores Sweden’s commitment to investing in practical, scalable, and deployable capabilities that directly support maneuver warfare in Northern Europe and beyond. It also illustrates a strategic understanding of the operational importance of engineering assets in contested or infrastructure-poor environments. As European defense planning increasingly focuses on logistics resilience and multi-domain mobility, the IRB represents a key asset enabling Swedish ground forces to operate with speed, flexibility, and coalition compatibility in the face of current and emerging threats.