View source for Engineering:Bofors 40 mm gun

{{short description|Autocannon family by Bofors}}
{{Infobox weapon
| name = Bofors 40 mm gun
| image = Bofors L60 IWM England.jpg
| image_size = 300
| caption = British Bofors 40 mm L/60 on Mk VII, Priddy's Hard, Gosport, United Kingdom
| origin = Sweden<!-- Country flag removed per WP:Manual of Style#Images. -->
| type = [[Engineering:Autocannon|Autocannon]]
<!-- Type selection -->| is_ranged = YES
| is_artillery = YES
<!-- Service history -->| service = 1934–present
| used_by = See ''users''
| wars = {{Plainlist|
* [[Social:World War II|World War II]]
* First Indochina War
* Indo-Pakistani wars and conflicts
* Arab–Israeli conflict
* Korean War
* Indonesia–Malaysia confrontation
* Congo Crisis
* Vietnam War
* Cambodian Civil War
* Nigerian Civil War
* Yom Kippur War
* South African Border War
* Falklands War
* Lebanese Civil War
* Gulf War
* Yugoslav wars
* [[Social:Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)|Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)]]
* Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen
}}
<!-- Production history -->| designer = Bofors Defence
| design_date = 1930
| manufacturer = Bofors Defence (1932–2000)<br/>Zastava Arms (1970–present)<br/>[[Company:United Defense|United Defense Industries]] (2000–2006)<br/>BAE Systems AB (2006–present)
| production_date = 1932–present
| number = >60,000 (L/60)<ref name="FW">{{cite web |last1=McColumn |first1=Ian |title=Swedish Antiaircraft Artillery: Bofors 40mm Automatic Gun M1 |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dJDn5F1GQk |website=Youtube |publisher=Forgotten Weapons |language=en |date=24 August 2018 |access-date=19 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190214184541/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7dJDn5F1GQk |archive-date=14 February 2019 |url-status=live }}</ref>
| variants = See ''variants''
<!-- General specifications -->| weight = L/60: {{convert|1981|kg|abbr=on}}<br/>L/70: {{convert|5150|kg|abbr=on}}
| length = L/60: {{convert|6.5|m|ftin|abbr=on}}<br/>L/70: {{convert|6.3|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
| part_length = L/60: {{convert|2.2|m|ftin|abbr=on}}<br/>L/70: {{convert|2.8|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
| width = L/60: {{convert|1.8|m|ftin|abbr=on}}<br/>L/70: {{convert|2.3|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
| height = L/60: {{convert|1.9|m|ftin|abbr=on}}<br/>L/70: {{convert|2.4|m|ftin|abbr=on}}<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=Jane's pocket book of towed artillery|last=Foss|first=Christopher|date=1977|publisher=Collier|pages=231–233|isbn=0020806000|location=New York|oclc=911907988}}</ref>
| crew = 4<ref name="MF">{{cite web |title=Bofors 40mm (Series) Towed Anti-Aircraft Gun / Air Defense Gun - Sweden |url=https://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=786 |website=www.militaryfactory.com |publisher=Military Factory |access-date=19 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219130414/https://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=786 |archive-date=19 February 2019 |url-status=live }}{{better source|date=February 2019}}</ref> (dependent on use)
<!-- Ranged weapon specifications -->| cartridge = Complete round:<br/>L/43 40×311mmR<br  />L/60 40×311mmR<br />L/70 40×365mmR
| cartridge_weight = {{convert|0.9|kg|lboz|abbr=on}}
| caliber = 40 mm L/60–70 (actual length varies from 56 to 70 calibers, based on model)
| barrels = 1 or 2<ref name="MF"/>
| action = 
| rate = L/60: 120 round/min<ref name="FW"/><br/>L/70: 240<ref name="FW"/>-330 round/min
| velocity = L/60: {{convert|881|m/s|abbr=on}} <br/>L/70: {{convert|1021|m/s|abbr=on}}
| range = 
| max_range = L/60: {{convert|7160|m|abbr=on}} <br/>L/70: {{convert|12500|m|abbr=on}}
| feed = 
| sights = <!-- Artillery specifications -->
| breech = 
| recoil = 
| carriage = {{convert|522|kg|abbr=on}}
| elevation = L/60: −5°/+90° (55°/s)<br/>L/70: −20°/+80° (57°/s)
| traverse = Full 360°<br/>L/60: 50°/s<br/>L/70: 92°/s
}}<!-- Data source:<ref name="NAVWEAP"/> -->

The '''Bofors 40 mm gun''', often referred to simply as the '''Bofors gun''',<ref name="NAVWEAP">{{cite web|url=http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12.htm|title=Sweden Bofors 40 mm/60 (1.57") Model 1936|date=14 January 2011|publisher=NavWeaps.Com|access-date=24 September 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070221160521/http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12.htm|archive-date=21 February 2007|url-status=live}}</ref> is an [[Social:Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft]] [[Engineering:Autocannon|autocannon]] designed in the 1930s by the Swedish arms manufacturer AB Bofors. It was one of the most popular medium-weight anti-aircraft systems during [[Social:World War II|World War II]], used by most of the western Allies as well as some captured systems being used by the Axis powers. A small number of these weapons remain in service to this day, and saw action as late as the Persian Gulf War.

In the post-war era, the original design was not suitable for action against jet-powered aircraft, so Bofors introduced a new model of significantly more power, the 40&nbsp;mm L/70. In spite of sharing almost nothing with the original design other than the calibre and the distinctive conical flash hider, this weapon is also widely known simply as "the Bofors". Although not as popular as the original L/60 model, the L/70 remains in service, especially as a multi-purpose weapon for light armoured vehicles, as on the CV 90.

Bofors has been part of BAE Systems AB since March 2005.

==Development==
The Swedish Navy purchased a number of 2-pounder ''Pom-Poms'' from [[Company:Vickers|Vickers]] as anti-aircraft guns in 1922. The Navy approached Bofors about the development of a more capable replacement. Bofors signed a contract in late 1928. Bofors produced a gun that was a smaller version of a 57&nbsp;mm (6-pounder) semi-automatic gun developed as an anti-[[Engineering:Torpedo boat|torpedo boat]] weapon in the late 19th century by Finspång. Their first test gun was a re-barreled Nordenfelt version of the Finspång gun, to which was added a semi-automatic loading mechanism.

Testing of this gun in 1929 demonstrated that a problem existed feeding the weapon in order to maintain a reasonable rate of fire. A mechanism that was strong enough to handle the stresses of moving the large round was too heavy to move quickly enough to fire rapidly. One attempt to solve this problem used [[Chemistry:Zinc|zinc]] shell cases that burned up when fired. This proved to leave heavy zinc deposits in the barrel, and had to be abandoned. In the summer of 1930 experiments were made with a new test gun that did away with controlled feed and instead flicked the spent casing out the rear whereafter a second mechanism reloaded the gun by "throwing" a fresh round from the magazine into the open breech. This seemed to be the solution they needed, improving firing rates to an acceptable level, and the work on a prototype commenced soon after.

During this period Krupp purchased a one-third share of Bofors. Krupp engineers started the process of updating the Bofors factories to use modern equipment and metallurgy, but the 40&nbsp;mm project was kept secret.

[[File:Bofors 40mm AAgun manege suomenlinna 1.jpg|thumb|left|Finnish Bofors 40 mm. This gun mounts the original reflector sights, and lacks the armor found on British examples]]
The prototype was completed and fired in November 1931, and by the middle of the month it was firing strings of two and three rounds. Changes to the feed mechanism were all that remained, and by the end of the year it was operating at 130 rounds per minute. Continued development was needed to turn it into a weapon suitable for production, which was completed in October 1933. Since acceptance trials had been passed the year before, this became known as the "40&nbsp;mm akan M/32". Most forces referred to it as the "Bofors 40&nbsp;mm L/60", although the barrel was actually 56.25 [[Engineering:Caliber (artillery)|calibres]] in length, not the 60 calibres that the name implies.{{citation needed|date=April 2014}}

The gun fired a {{convert|900|g|lb|abbr=on}} high explosive 40 × 311R (rimmed) shell at {{convert|2960|ft/s|m/s|abbr=on}}.<ref>{{cite book |last=Johnson |first=Melvin M., Jr. |title=Rifles and Machine Guns |publisher=William Morrow and Company |year=1944 |page=385}}</ref> The rate of fire was normally about 120 rounds per minute (2.0 rounds per second), which increased slightly when the barrels were closer to the horizon as gravity assisted the feeding from the top-mounted magazine. In practice firing rates were closer to 80–100 rpm (1.3–1.7 rounds per second), as the rounds were fed into the breech from four round clips which had to be replaced by hand. The maximum attainable ceiling was {{convert|7200|m|abbr=on}}, but the practical maximum was about {{convert|3800|m|abbr=on}}.

The gun was provided with an advanced sighting system. The trainer and layer were both provided with [[Physics:Reflector sight|reflector sight]]s for aiming, while a third crew-member standing behind them "adjusted" for lead using a simple mechanical computer. Power for the sights was supplied from a 6[[Volt|V]] battery.

[[File:Bofors-p004596.jpg|thumb|left|British 40mm L/60 includes the British-designed ''Stiffkey Sight'', being operated by the gun layer standing on the right. The layer operates the trapeze seen above the sights, moving them to adjust for lead. The loader stands to the layer's left, and the two trainer/aimers are sitting on either side of the gun]]
In spite of the successful development, the Swedish Navy changed its mind and decided it needed a smaller hand-traversed weapon of 13&nbsp;mm-25&nbsp;mm size, and tested various designs from foreign suppliers. With the 40&nbsp;mm well along in development, Bofors offered a 25&nbsp;mm version in 1932, which was eventually selected as the Bofors 25 mm M/32.

The first version of the 40&nbsp;mm the Navy ordered was intended for use on submarines, where the larger calibre allowed the gun to be used for both AA and against smaller ships. The barrel was shorter at 42 calibers long, which reduced the muzzle velocity to about {{convert|700|m/s|ft/s|abbr=on}}. When not in use, the gun was pointed directly up and retracted into a watertight cylinder. The only known submarines that used this arrangement were the ''Sjölejonet''-class boats. The guns were later removed as the subs were modified with streamlined conning towers.

The first order for the "real" L/60 was made by the Dutch Navy, which ordered five twin-gun mounts for the [[Engineering:Cruiser|cruiser]] {{HNLMS|De Ruyter|1935|2}} in August 1934. These guns were stabilized using the ''Hazemeyer mount'', in which one set of layers aimed the gun, while a second manually stabilized the platform the gun sat on. All five mounts were operated by one fire control system.

Bofors also developed a towable carriage which they displayed in April 1935 at a show in Belgium. This mount allowed the gun to be fired from the carriage with no setup required, although with limited accuracy. If time was available for setup, the gunners used the tow-bar and muzzle lock as levers, raising the wheels off the ground and thereby lowering the gun onto supporting pads. Two additional legs folded out to the sides, and the platform was then leveled with hand cranks. The entire setup process could be completed in under a minute.

Orders for the land-based versions were immediate, starting with an order for eight weapons from Belgium in August 1935, and followed by a flood of orders from other forces including Poland, Norway, and Finland.{{sfn|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986|p=1749}} It was accepted into the Swedish Army the next year, known as the "40&nbsp;mm lvakan m/36", the lower-case "m" indicating an Army model as opposed to the capital "M" for Navy.

The Swedish Navy adopted the weapon as the m/36 in hand-worked single air-cooled, and power-operated twin water-cooled versions. A twin air-cooled mounting, probably hand-worked, was also used by the navies of Sweden and Argentina, and a twin air-cooled wet mounting was developed for Polish submarines.{{clear left}}

==British versions==
===Army and RAF Regiment versions===
[[File:QF 40mm Mk1 CFB Borden 1.jpg|thumb|Q.F. 40 mm Mk. 1 displayed at CFB Borden. This example mounts a Stiffkey Sight, and displays the additional armor protecting the gunners]]
[[File:HMS Isis Bofors gun, Tobermory, 1978.jpg|thumb|Bofors gun on the {{sclass2|Ley|minehunter}} {{HMS|Isis|M2010|6}} (1978)]]

The British Army had first examined the weapon when they received a number of Polish-built examples in 1937 for testing, known as the "QF 40&nbsp;mm Mark I" (QF standing for "quick firing"), or "Mark I/2" after a minor change to the flash hider. A licence was acquired and the gun was converted from [[Metric system|metric]] to imperial measurements. They also made numerous changes to the design to make it more suitable for mass production, as the original Bofors design was intended to be hand-assembled, and many parts were labeled "file to fit on assembly", requiring many man-hours of work to complete.

Testing showed that aiming the guns at high-speed aircraft was a serious problem. Although the gun could be trained quickly, aiming accurately while doing so proved difficult. In order to address this, the British introduced a complex [[Analog computer|mechanical analogue computer]], the [[Engineering:Kerrison Predictor|Kerrison Director]], which drove the laying electrically. A three-man team operated the director simply by pointing it at the target whilst dialing in estimates for speed, range, and various atmospheric conditions. The director then aimed the guns directly through powered mounts, as the gunners loaded the clips. This eliminated the need for the lead-correcting reflector sights, which were replaced with a backup system consisting of a simple ring-and-post sight known as a "pancake".

In this form, the "QF 40&nbsp;mm Mark III" (Mk II was a designation used for a Vickers "pom-pom"), became the Army's standard light AA (anti-aircraft) weapon, operating alongside their 3-inch and 3.7-inch heavy weapons. The gun was considered so important to the defence of Britain after the fall of France in 1940 that a movie, ''The Gun'', was produced to encourage machinists to work harder and complete more of them. British production started slowly: by September 1939 only 233 equipments had been produced; but by the end of the war total production from British, Canadian and Australian factories was over 19,000. Peak production year was 1942 when British factories produced 5,025 and Canadian factories produced 1,311.
<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wwiiequipment.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=84:bofors-40mm-anti-aircraft-gun&catid=41:anti-aircraft&Itemid=58|title=Bofors 40mm Anti-Aircraft Gun|first=David|last=Boyd|website=www.wwiiequipment.com|access-date=13 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170314152105/http://www.wwiiequipment.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=84:bofors-40mm-anti-aircraft-gun&catid=41:anti-aircraft&Itemid=58|archive-date=14 March 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Bofors L60 Gunsight.jpg|thumb|left|Bofors L/60 sighting system, left side]]
In combat it was found that the Kerrison was difficult to set up to use in many situations, as well as making [[Finance:Logistics|logistics]] more complex due to the need to keep its electrical generator supplied with fuel. In most engagements only the pancake sights were used, without any form of correction, making the British versions less capable than those used by other forces. Eventually an anti-aircraft gunnery school on the range at Stiffkey on the Norfolk coast delivered a workable solution, a trapeze-like arrangement that moved the pancake sights to offer lead correction, operated by a new crew-member standing behind the left-hand layer. The "Stiffkey Sight" was sent out to units in 1943, arriving in Canadian units in the midst of the Battle of the Aleutian Islands. A final wartime change to the elevation mechanism resulted in the "QF 40&nbsp;mm Mark XII". They also designed a much lighter two-wheeled carriage for airborne use.

The Army also experimented with various self-propelled anti-aircraft systems based on various [[Engineering:Tank|tank]] chassis. Changes to the breech for this role created the "QF 40&nbsp;mm Mark VI", which was used on the [[Engineering:Crusader tank|Crusader]] to produce the [[Engineering:Crusader tank#Crusader III, AA Mk I|Crusader III AA Mark I]]. The main self-propelled version of the Bofors used the gun set on the chassis of a [[Company:Morris Motors|Morris Commercial]] four-wheel drive lorry, this was known as the "Carrier, SP, 4x4 40mm, AA (Bofors) 30cwt". Such guns were used in support of Army divisions to provide swift protection against air attack without the need to unlimber. They saw service in north-west Europe, where six SP Bofors of 92nd (Loyals) Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment, Royal Artillery, landed with the British 3rd Infantry Division on Sword Beach on D-Day to protect the vital bridges over the Caen Canal and Orne River (Pegasus Bridge and Horsa Bridge), shooting down 17 German planes. Later in the campaign, SP Bofors were used extensively for ground shoots as well as in an anti-aircraft role. In British army service the Bofors found a highly specialised role: during the North Africa Campaign at the Second Battle of El Alamein, they were used to fire [[Engineering:Tracer ammunition|tracer]] horizontally to mark safe paths for units through the German minefields. This practice was further developed during operations in north-west Europe, where bursts of colour-coded tracer were used to define the axis of advance of the different formations in large-scale night attacks.

The formation of the RAF Regiment in February 1942 (in response to the Army's failure to defend airfields on Crete, which resulted in strategic defeat on the island to numerically inferior German forces) signalled the transfer of responsibility for defending airfields to the RAF from the Army. This included low-level air defence and the Bofors L60—to the same design as the Army version—was the principal weapon for the RAF Regiment's Light Anti-Aircraft squadrons in North Africa, Malta, Italy, the Balkans, the UK (including the allocation of fifty-two squadrons to Operation DIVER), and north-western Europe (from D-Day through to the cessation of hostilities). No 2875 Squadron RAF Regiment, employing the L60, became the first unit to shoot down a jet aircraft, a [[Engineering:Messerschmitt Me 262|Me 262]], with ground-based anti-aircraft fire, at Helmond in the Netherlands on 28 November 1944. Although the Allied air forces had achieved air superiority after D-Day, forward airfields continued to be high priority targets for the Luftwaffe when the opportunity presented and this ensured that the RAF Regiment's L60s continued to be heavily used. For example, during the Ardennes Offensive, RAF Regiment Light Anti-Aircraft squadrons shot down 43 German aircraft and damaged 28 others during attacks on eleven RAF forward airfields on New Year's Day 1945. After World War 2, the RAF Regiment continued to employ the L60 as its principal anti-aircraft weapon until it was replaced by the L70 gun in 1957. The guns were deployed in the UK, Germany, Cyprus, the Middle East, and the Far East (there had been insufficient L60s available to equip the RAF Regiment's squadrons in the Far East during the war; these having to make do mostly with [[Engineering:Hispano-Suiza HS.404|Hispano]] and [[Engineering:Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|Oerlikon]] guns).

===Naval versions===
[[File:ORP Blyskawica - dziala2.jpg|thumb|Twin Bofors 40 mm aboard ORP ''Błyskawica'', a WWII destroyer of the Polish Navy|left]]
[[File:Boffin 40mm bofors cfb borden 1.jpg|thumb|Single Bofors 40 mm Boffin mounting, displayed at CFB Borden. In 1996 museum pieces like this cannon were pressed back into service to serve as the main armament of the ''Kingston''-class minesweepers<ref name=CASRKingstonClass2>{{cite web |url=http://casrca.nationprotect.net/id-mcdv-midlife-2.htm |title=The Kingston Class: 'Mid-Life' or Move Over for the MCDV? |publisher=Canadian American Strategic Review |last=Priestley |first=Stephen |access-date=2012-01-09 |date=June 2006 |quote=<!-- Among MCDV inadequacies, armament is listed as the major limit- ation for sovereignty patrol duties. The ''Kingston'' class are armed with twin 12.7 mm M2HB machineguns on either side of the bridge but the main armament is a 40mm L/60 Bofors. This gun is a museum piece dating back to 1944. Even as training weapons, the Bofors is of dubious value – they were just on hand and lowered costs. --> |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131203015054/http://casrca.nationprotect.net/id-mcdv-midlife-2.htm |archive-date=3 December 2013}}</ref>]]

The Royal Navy also made extensive use of the Bofors. Their first examples were air-cooled versions quickly adapted to ships during the withdrawal from Norway. With the fall of western Europe in 1940 the Dutch mine-layer ''Willem van der Zaan'' brought them their first example of a water-cooled gun on their Hazemeyer tri-axially stabilized mounting. Locally produced examples started arriving in 1942, known as the "QF 40&nbsp;mm Mark IV" for use in twin-mounts, or the "QF 40&nbsp;mm Mark V" for single mounts. The Navy ran through a variety of versions of the basic Bofors gun over the war, including the Mark VII to Mark XI. The Royal Navy's home-grown light anti-aircraft weapon, the QF 2-pounder gun, also had a caliber of 40&nbsp;mm, but was referred to as the QF 2-pdr.

The designation of models in Royal Navy service can be confusing as the gun and its mounting received separate mark numbers. The following mountings were used;
* Mark I: twin mounting based on American design and using American-built guns, not widely fitted. Fitted for remote [[Engineering:Fire-control system|fire control]].
* Mark II: quadruple version similar to Mark I
* Mark III: a navalized version of the Army single mounting, hand worked elevation and training.
* Mark IV: a tri-axially stabilized twin mounting copied from, and usually known as, the "Hazemeyer". It had on-mounting fire control, and was usually fitted with Radar Type 282 to provide target range information.
* Mark V: twin mounting, that superseded and eventually replaced the Mark IV, often referred to as the "utility" mounting. This was a simplified, unstabilised mounting based on the American twin mounting Mark I, and was designed for remote fire control.
* Mark VI: a six-barreled weapon feeding from large trays instead of clips and designed for remote control from a dedicated radar-equipped director.
* Mark VII: a single-barreled, hydraulically-powered mounting that superseded the Mark III and entered service in 1945.
* Mark IX: Mark VII mount modified to electrical power, as the Mounting Mark IX, and in this form saw service in the Falklands War.

The Mounting Mark V (Mark VC for Canadian built examples) for the [[Engineering:Oerlikon 20 mm cannon|20 mm Oerlikon]] and QF 2 pounder guns was also adopted initially as an interim mount for the Bofors. It was a single-barreled mounting with hydraulic power, and was known as the "Boffin".

The final British Bofors mounting that saw service was the "stabilized tachymetric anti-aircraft gun" (STAAG) which was twin-barrelled, stabilised, and carried its own tachymetric (i.e. predictive) fire control system, based around the centimeter Radar Type 262, capable of "locking on" to a target. This mounting was heavy (17.5 tons) and the high-vibration environment of the gun mounting was poor location for sensitive valve electronics and mechanical computers. STAAG Mark I carried the radar dish over the gun barrels where it was subject to damage during firing, therefore STAAG Mark II shifted the set to the roof of the control cabin. STAAG was ultimately too difficult to maintain in the harsh environment of a warship and was later replaced by the Mounting Mark V with the fire control equipment located remotely, the single Mark VII and ultimately, with the Sea Cat missile. The final version of STAAG was fitted to the RN Type 12 ''Whitby'' anti-submarine frigates and the Type 41/Type 61 diesel frigates completed from 1956 to 1958. HMNZS ''Royalist'' was also fitted with STAAG Mk 2 during modernisation, completed in 1956. Initially it had three STAAG CIWS, the STAAG in Q position was removed in 1960, but it carried two mounts until the end of its service in South East Asian waters, in 1965. The crew of ''Royalist'' appeared to find the STAAG a reasonably effective and impressive anti-aircraft weapon during Operation Musketeer in 1956, off Egypt.

==U.S. versions==
===Manufacturing===
In order to supply both the U.S. Army and U.S. Navy with much greater numbers of the guns, [[Company:Chrysler|Chrysler]] built 60,000 of the guns and 120,000 barrels through the war,<ref name="FW"/> at half the original projected cost, and filling the Army's needs by 1943.<ref name="allpar">{{cite journal |url=http://www.allpar.com/history/military/bofors.html |title=Chrysler Corporation, Gun Maker: Bofors Guns of World War II |journal=Allpar |access-date=2010-11-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101107194948/http://www.allpar.com/history/military/bofors.html |archive-date=7 November 2010 |url-status=live }}</ref> Over the lifetime of the production, their engineers introduced numerous additional changes to improve mass production, eventually halving the overall time needed to build a gun; most of these changes were in production methods rather than the design of the gun itself.<ref name="allpar" /><ref>Borth, Christy. ''Masters of Mass Production'', pp. 164–165, 197, 200–204, Bobbs-Merrill Company, Indianapolis, Indiana, 1945.</ref> York Safe & Lock also produced the weapons, though its attempts to coordinate drawings across the program were unsuccessful, and this responsibility was transferred to the Naval Gun Factory in July 1943.<ref name=BuOrd1/>

There were many difficulties in producing the guns within the United States, beyond their complexity (illustrated by the use of 2,000 subcontractors in 330 cities and 12 Chrysler factories to make and assemble the parts). The drawings were metric, in Swedish and read from the [[Multiview orthographic projection|first angle of projection]]. Chrysler had to translate to English, fix absolute dimensions, and switch to the third angle of projection. Chrysler engineers also tried to simplify the gun, unsuccessfully, and to take high-speed movies to find possible improvements, but this was not possible until near the end of the war.<ref name="allpar" />
<!-- massive quote from source hidden
<blockquote>It should be noted that the USN considered the original Bofors Model 1936 design to be completely unsuitable for the mass production techniques required for the vast number of guns needed to equip the ships of the U.S. Navy. Firstly, the Swedish guns were designed using metric measurement units, a system all but unknown in the United States at that time. Secondly, the Swedish guns required a great deal of hand work in order to make the finished weapon. For example, Swedish blueprints had many notes on them such as "file to fit at assembly" and "drill to fit at assembly," all of which took much production time in order to implement. Thirdly, the Swedish mountings were manually worked, while the USN required power-worked mountings in order to attain the fast elevation and training speeds necessary to engage modern aircraft. Fourthly, the Swedish guns were air-cooled, limiting their ability to fire long bursts, a necessity for most naval AA engagements. Finally, the USN rejected the Swedish ammunition design, as it was not boresafe, the fuze was found to be too sensitive for normal shipboard use and its overall design was determined to be unsuitable for mass production. US manufacturers made radical changes to the Swedish design in order to minimize these problems and as a result the guns and mountings produced in the United States bore little resemblance their Swedish ancestors.<ref name="NAVWEAP"/><ref name=BuOrd1/></blockquote> -->

===Naval===
[[File:Bofors firing USS Hornet.jpg|thumb|A MK 12 quadruple mount of Bofors guns fires from {{USS|Hornet|CV-12|6}}]]
<!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:M5 director.jpg|thumb|M5 gun director 1944]] -->
The United States Navy's Bureau of Ordnance purchased a twin-mount air-cooled example, spare parts and 3,000 rounds of ammunition directly from Bofors, which arrived in New York on 28 August 1940 aboard the Army transport {{USAT|American Legion}}, which had evacuated 897 people, including members of the Norwegian royal family, through the Finnish port of Petsamo.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/a/american-legion.html |title=''American Legion'' |author=Naval History And Heritage Command |work=Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships |publisher=Naval History And Heritage Command |access-date=10 August 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924143341/http://www.history.navy.mil/research/histories/ship-histories/danfs/a/american-legion.html |archive-date=24 September 2015 |url-status=live }}</ref> During that month another Dutch ship, the ''Van Kinsbergen'', demonstrated the Hazemeyer mount to Navy observers. The gun was quickly chosen as the Navy's standard anti-aircraft weapon over the British 40mm calibre, 2-pounder pom-pom; however, negotiations with Bofors for licensed production stalled when the Swedes requested airplane export and manufacturing licenses in return.<ref name=BuOrd1>{{cite book |last=Rowland |first=Buford |author2=Boyd, William |title=US Navy Bureau of Ordnance in World War II |publisher=US Navy Bureau of Ordnance, Department of the Navy |year=1954 |pages=219–230 |location=Washington, DC |url=https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/007884814 |access-date=29 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161010153503/https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/007884814 |archive-date=10 October 2016 |url-status=live }}</ref> Reportedly, the Navy secretly imported a set of [[Imperial units|imperial]] designs from Britain and started production illegally. A formal contract with Bofors was reached in June 1941. The resulting Mark 1 and Mark 2 weapons were intended for the left and right side of a twin mount, respectively, and were adapted by Chrysler for water cooling.<ref name="allpar" />
[[File:40MM Bofors Anti-Aircraft Gun, Patriots Point.jpg|thumb|A twin Bofors 40 mm at Patriots Point]]
Following the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941, the existing 1.1" (28 mm) quad mount and .50 caliber machine guns were determined to be inadequate against modern aircraft, and their replacement by 40&nbsp;mm Bofors and 20 mm Oerlikon weapons was accelerated. The water-cooled version was used almost exclusively by the U.S. Navy and Coast Guard. The 40&nbsp;mm quadruple mount was developed by essentially mounting two twin mounts side by side.<ref name=BuOrd1/> A major improvement was the addition of power operation to both twin and quadruple mounts. Essentially all US naval mountings were twin or quadruple. 40&nbsp;mm weapons were eventually mounted on virtually every naval and armed auxiliary vessel larger than a small landing craft.<ref name=BuOrd1/> After the war, the 3"/50 caliber gun Mark 27 twin mount began to replace the Bofors, because the "VT" proximity fuse would not fit a 40mm projectile, and the 40&nbsp;mm weapon was considered inadequate against the emerging [[Engineering:Anti-ship missile|anti-ship missile]] threat. The twin 3" mount was intended to be the same weight as the 40mm quad mount, but was somewhat heavier in practice, which had to be compensated for. Except on destroyers and new construction, the Navy was slow in phasing out the 40&nbsp;mm gun, and it continued in active Navy service through the Korean War. It remained on inactive [[Engineering:Reserve fleet|Reserve fleet]] ships at least through the early 1970s.<ref>{{cite book |last=Friedman |first=Norman |title=U.S. Destroyers: An Illustrated Design History |pages=130–131 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |year=2004 |location=Annapolis |isbn=1-55750-442-3|edition=Revised }}</ref>

The Navy's satisfaction with the weapons was demonstrated by their practice of telegraphing Chrysler Corporation with the serial numbers of guns when they shot down an aircraft.<ref name="allpar" />
===Army===
[[File:40mm M1 Automatic Gun (A-A), & M2(A1) Carriage FRONT TM9-252 fig002.jpg|thumb|The U.S. Army 40-mm Automatic Gun, Anti-Aircraft, M1, on 40-mm Gun Carriage M2(A1); (TM-9 252)|left]]
In 1938 the United States Army introduced a 37&nbsp;mm gun of their own design, but found it to be of limited performance. In early World War II, six British Bofors were imported for testing, along with [[Engineering:Kerrison Predictor|Kerrison Predictor]] [[Physics:Director (military)|directors]], and they proved to be superior in all areas. By the middle part of the war, most of the 37&nbsp;mm guns had been replaced by the 40&nbsp;mm.[[File:40mmGunFortWarren01.jpg|thumb|Two 40 mm M1 guns on US Army mountings]]In U.S. Army and Marine Corps service, the single mount Bofors was known as the '''40&nbsp;mm Automatic Gun M1'''.{{sfn|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986|p=1753}} The U.S. version of the gun fired three variants of the British Mk. II high-explosive shell as well as the M81A1 armor-piercing round, which was capable of penetrating some 50&nbsp;mm of homogeneous armor plate at a range of 500 yards.
In the Army, each Anti-Aircraft Artillery (AAA) auto-weapons battalion was authorized a total of thirty-two 40&nbsp;mm guns in its four firing batteries.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.militaryresearch.org/44-25%2022Apr44.pdf|title=TO&E 44-25, AAA Auto-Weapons Battalion, Mobile|website=militaryresearch.org|access-date=29 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161010153526/http://www.militaryresearch.org/44-25%2022Apr44.pdf|archive-date=10 October 2016|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.385th.com/ |title=385th AAA Auto-Weapons Battalion website |access-date=29 September 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161009195815/http://www.385th.com/ |archive-date=9 October 2016 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Each U.S. Marine division had a "special weapons battalion" that included sixteen 40&nbsp;mm guns; in early 1944 these were replaced with anti-aircraft battalions with twelve 40&nbsp;mm guns. Marine defense battalions also used the 40&nbsp;mm gun.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ww2gyrene.org/special_weapons_battalion.htm|title=Divisional Special Weapons Battalion at Gyrene.org|website=ww2gyrene.org|access-date=29 September 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161025201404/http://www.ww2gyrene.org/special_weapons_battalion.htm|archive-date=25 October 2016|url-status=live}}</ref> All of these unit types also included other AA weapons.

During World War II, the twin mount version of the gun was mounted on an M24 Chaffee tank chassis as the M19 Gun Motor Carriage. In the 1950s, the M41 Walker Bulldog tank was heavily modified into the M42 Duster with the same twin 40&nbsp;mm mounting. After being largely withdrawn from service in the early 1960s, the M42 was re-introduced beginning in 1966 for the Vietnam War, where it was mostly used for ground fire support. Following the withdrawal from Vietnam in the early 1970s, the M42 was retained in National Guard service until finally retired in 1988.

===Air Force===
''See {{section link|Bofors 40 mm gun|AC-130 Gunship}}''

==Captured examples==
In World War II Germany, the ''Wehrmacht'' used a number of Bofors guns which had been captured in Poland and France. The ''Kriegsmarine'' also operated some guns obtained from Norway. In German naval use, the gun was designated the "4&nbsp;cm Flak 28", and was used aboard the cruisers ''Admiral Hipper'' and ''Prinz Eugen'' toward the end of the war.<ref>Campbell, p. 254</ref> Beginning in 1942, several E-boats were equipped with the Flak 28 to enable them to fight against British MGBs and MTBs on equal terms.

Germany also purchased a large number (200+) of Hungarian-made Bofors guns. In return, Hungary received a 75 mm PAK gun for every 4-5 Bofors. The Wehrmacht used Hungarian guns after German occupation of Hungary from late 1944. Most of them were lost during the fights in Budapest and Trandanubia.<ref>{{Cite book|title=A Magyar Királyi Honvédség légvédelme 1920-1945|last=Barczy|first=Zoltán|publisher=Zrínyi|year=2010|isbn=9789633274989|location=Budapest}}</ref>

Japan captured a number of Bofors guns in [[Place:Singapore|Singapore]] and put them into production as the Type 5.

After the Continuation war the [[Place:Soviet Union|Soviet Union]] took possession of the Finnish coastal defence ship Väinämöinen, which was armed with four M/36 Bofors guns.

Both Japan and West Germany continued to use the Bofors gun throughout the Cold War. The Federal German navy used it in destroyers, frigates, and fast patrol boats until 1984, and in minesweepers to the present day.

==Variants==
===40 mm L/43===
Bofors L/43 is a [[Engineering:Submarine|submarine]] variant of L/60 with retractable mounting, and using low propellant charge ammunition.<ref name="urlThe Bofors Gun - Terry Gander - Google Książki">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-o3PBQAAQBAJ&q=bofors+L%2F43&pg=PA107 |title=The Bofors Gun - Terry Gander - Google Książki |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181029152324/https://books.google.com/books?id=-o3PBQAAQBAJ&pg=PA107&lpg=PA107&dq=bofors+L%2F43&source=bl&ots=dlLWYaW0dU&sig=-konmcQJRaZIJaGwwiPM34z81Bs&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjOrb3ByqveAhXuo4sKHT-0Ab0Q6AEwDXoECCgQAQ#v=onepage&q=bofors%20L%2F43&f=false |archive-date=29 October 2018 |url-status=live |isbn=9781783462025 |last1=Gander |first1=Terry |date=30 April 2013 }}</ref><ref name="urlUSA Bofors 40 mm L/60 Model 1936 - NavWeaps">{{cite web |url=http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12.php |title=USA Bofors 40 mm L/60 Model 1936 - NavWeaps |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180216041355/http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12.php |archive-date=16 February 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="urlBOFORS AUTOMATIC CANNON">{{cite web |url=http://www.quarryhs.co.uk/Bofors.htm |title=BOFORS AUTOMATIC CANNON |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121228005723/http://www.quarry.nildram.co.uk/Bofors.htm |archive-date=28 December 2012 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===40 mm L/60===
[[File:HMCS Nanaimo Bofors.jpg|thumb|right|The L/60 Bofors fitted to the {{sclass|Kingston|coastal defence vessel|2}} {{HMCS|Nanaimo|MM 702|6}}]]
[[File:40mm-twin-naval.jpg|thumb|right|Twin L/60 dismounted from an Argentinian corvette which saw service during the Falklands War]]
[[File:HMAS Sydney Bofors guns.jpg|thumb|right|Some of {{HMAS|Sydney|R17|6}}'s 40 mm L/60 guns firing off Korea in 1951]]
L/60 is an [[Engineering:Autocannon|autocannon]] using 40x311mmR ammunition. Although the L/60 was later replaced in production by the L/70, it remained in front-line service well into the 1980s and 1990s. In most cases, these were the ground anti-aircraft versions, as a suitable replacement in this role did not come along until the introduction of truly effective MANPADS missiles in the 1980s and 1990s.

In United States Army service, the M19 Gun Motor Carriage was replaced by the M42 Duster, using the same turret but based on the chassis of the M41 Walker Bulldog tank.

The L/60 saw active service with the Argentinian and British navies in the 1982 Falklands War and continued to be used into the 1990s, when it was replaced by modern 20&nbsp;mm and 30&nbsp;mm artillery.

The Canadian Forces also used Bofors on their surface fleet, removed the guns in the late 1980s when they were considered to be outdated, only to re-use old Bofors guns as the main armament of the {{sclass|Kingston|coastal defence vessel|2}}.<ref name=CASRKingstonClass2/> The Bofors served as the main armament for almost 20 years.<ref name=Nord2017-05-16/> The decision to remove them was made in 2014, due to their maintenance burden, and their lack of stabilization.

As of August 2006, the French navy uses L/60s on more than twenty ships (patrols and auxiliaries). Ships of the Norwegian and Icelandic Coast Guards continue to use the 40mm Bofors gun.
The L/60 continued in use in the Irish Army until recent years, when it was retired in favour of the radar-controlled L/70. The Irish Naval Service P20 class retained L/60s on board as their main weapon until the 1990s but were rearmed with L/70s. The last remaining P20-class patrol vessel, (LÉ ''Aisling'') decommissioned in 2016, was the final vessel fitted with the L/70.
Two retired L/60s can be seen adjacent the square in Sarsfield Barracks, Limerick.

The last 40&nbsp;mm/60 Bofors in service with the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) were used as the main weapon aboard the {{sclass|Attack|patrol boat|4}} and {{sclass|Fremantle|patrol boat|4}} patrol boats and for training purposes at the West Head gunnery range at {{HMAS|Cerberus|naval base|6}}.<ref name=lastblast>{{cite news|url=http://www.navy.gov.au/w/index.php/Last_blast_for_Bofors |title=Last blast for Bofors |year=2007 |publisher=Royal Australian Navy |access-date=2009-09-14 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110613233736/http://www.navy.gov.au/w/index.php/Last_blast_for_Bofors |archive-date=13 June 2011 }}</ref> These were removed from service during 2007; Bofors were used aboard almost every RAN ship to operate between the 1940s and the 1990s, including the aircraft carriers ''Sydney'' and ''Melbourne''.<ref name=lastblast/>

As of 2012, the L/60 is still in use by the military of Brazil, Indonesia, Paraguay, Taiwan, and the United States.

====AC-130 Gunship====
[[File:Bofors guns on Spectre gunship.jpg|thumb|left|Bofors guns on a AC-130E Spectre gunship]]
Since the beginning of the 1970s Bofors L/60s have been used in the {{wipe|United States Air Force}}'s [[Engineering:Lockheed AC-130|AC-130 gunships]] in the air-to-ground role.<ref name=gunships>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2h1dYiEC9jcC|title=Development and Employment of Fixed-Wing Gunships, 1962–1972|year=1982|publisher=Office of Air Force History, United States Air Force |access-date=2013-10-11|isbn=9781428993648}}</ref> Between 2006 and 2012, there were plans to remove these and the [[Engineering:M61 Vulcan|M61 Vulcan]]s from newer AC-130U variants and replace them with 30&nbsp;mm autocannons. However, these plans did not come to fruition at the time, and the Bofors and Vulcans remained in service {{As of|2009|lc=y}},<ref name=replacement>{{cite news|url=http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/a-spookier-spooky-30mm-at-a-time-03023/|title=A Spookier Spooky, 30mm at a Time? Nope.|year=2009|work=Defense Industry Daily|access-date=2013-10-11|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921043205/http://www.defenseindustrydaily.com/a-spookier-spooky-30mm-at-a-time-03023/|archive-date=21 September 2013|url-status=live}}</ref> though the later W- and upcoming J-model variants have 30&nbsp;mm [[Engineering:Mk44 Bushmaster II|Mk44 Bushmaster II]] autocannons instead.<ref name="AC-130W">{{cite web|title=AC-130W Stinger II - U.S. Air Force > Fact Sheet Display|url=http://www.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/104485/ac-130w-stinger-ii/|website=U.S. Air Force|publisher=AFSOC Public Affairs|access-date=18 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422091432/http://www.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/104485/ac-130w-stinger-ii/|archive-date=22 April 2018|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="AC-130J">{{cite web|title=AC-130J Ghostrider - U.S. Air Force > Fact Sheet Display|url=http://www.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/467756/ac-130j-ghostrider/|website=U.S. Air Force|publisher=AFSOC Public Affairs|access-date=18 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180428232540/http://www.af.mil/About-Us/Fact-Sheets/Display/Article/467756/ac-130j-ghostrider/|archive-date=28 April 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

When four additional AC-130Us were to be converted from 2002, the necessary 40&nbsp;mm L/60 guns had to be salvaged from old M42 targets at the Nellis AFB range.<ref name=salvage>{{cite news|title=Air Commando Journal, Summer 2012, p. 22}}</ref>

===40 mm L/70 {{Anchor|Bofors 40mm L/70}}===
{{Multiple image
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| caption1 = New Serbian hybrid SPAAA 40mm and SAM – [[Engineering:PASARS|PASARS]] 16
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By the end of World War II, the speed of jet aircraft enabled them to withdraw quickly out of range of the Bofors; a longer range was necessary. A higher rate of fire was also required, increasing the number of rounds fired over the period of an engagement. Bofors considered either updating the 40&nbsp;mm, or alternatively making a much more powerful 57&nbsp;mm design. In the end they did both.

The new 40&nbsp;mm design used a larger 40×365R round firing a slightly lighter 870 g shell at a much higher 1,030&nbsp;m/s (3,379 fps) muzzle velocity. The rate of fire was increased to 240 rounds per minute<ref name="FW"/> (4.0 rounds per second), similar to the German Flak 43. Additionally, the carriage was modified to be power-laid, the power being supplied by a generator placed on the front of the carriage. The first version was produced in 1947, accepted in 1948 as the "40&nbsp;mm lvakan m/48", and entered Swedish service in 1951. Additional changes over the years have increased the firing rate first to 300 rpm (5.0 rounds per second), and later to 330 rpm (5.5 rps). The introduction of a 40mm proximity fuzed round in the early 1970s was another improvement.

[[File:Swedish CV9040.JPG|thumb|left|Bofors 40 armed Swedish Combat Vehicle 90 (CV90)]]

Foreign sales started, as they had in the past, with the Netherlands and the United Kingdom. In November 1953 it was accepted as the NATO standard anti-aircraft gun, and was soon produced in the thousands. The L/70 was also used as the basis for a number of SPAAGs, including the U.S. Army's failed M247 Sergeant York. The UK's RAF Regiment adopted the L70 to replace its L60 guns in 1957, replacing its last examples in 1977 with the Rapier missile system.

In 1970s Zastava Arms acquired from Bofors a license to produce the L/70 together with laser-computer group.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.zastava-arms.rs/en/imagetext/1970-1992|title=1970-1992 - Zastava-arms|website=www.zastava-arms.rs|access-date=4 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180105011927/http://www.zastava-arms.rs/en/imagetext/1970-1992|archive-date=5 January 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref> Ammunition for the L/70 is produced locally for both domestic and export use by Sloboda Čačak<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.yugoimport.com/en/proizvodi/ammunition-40mm-x-365-anti-aircraft-gun-40mm-l70-bofors|title=AMMUNITION 40mm x 365 FOR ANTI-AIRCRAFT GUN 40mm L/70 BOFORS - SDPR - Yugoimport|website=www.yugoimport.com|access-date=4 January 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180105123144/http://www.yugoimport.com/en/proizvodi/ammunition-40mm-x-365-anti-aircraft-gun-40mm-l70-bofors|archive-date=5 January 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1979 the {{wipe|Royal Netherlands Air Force}} acquired 25 KL/MSS-6720 Flycatcher radar system and upgraded 75 of their 40L70s to create 25 firing units for static air base defence. The improved guns had an increased rate of fire (300 rounds/min), and the [[Engineering:Autoloader|loading mechanism]] was provided with extended guides so that it could hold 22 cartridges. A 220 volt [[Engineering:Diesel generator|diesel generator]] was mounted onto the undercarriage, powered by a [[Company:Volkswagen|Volkswagen]] diesel engine.

In 1989 the Royal Netherlands Army acquired 30 Flycatcher systems, each fielded with two modified Bofors 40L70G guns (the appended 'G' is for 'gemodificeerd', 'modified'). In the 40L70G version the loading mechanism was further improved and could be recognized by open rear guides. The 40L70G guns were also provided with muzzle velocity radars.

Early in the 1990s the {{wipe|Royal Netherlands Air Force}} 40L70s were upgraded to the 'G' version.

In the gun-armed versions of the Swedish Army [[Engineering:Combat Vehicle 90|Combat Vehicle 90]] a cartridge-fed automatic version of the L/70 autocannon is fitted. In order to fit inside the vehicle, the gun is mounted upside down. New armour piercing and programmable ammunition have also been developed. Germany has used L/70 guns on its Class 352, Class 333 and Class 332 minesweeper vessels, although these will be replaced by Rheinmetall MLG 27 remote-controlled gun systems until 2008. Until the early 1980s L/70 guns guided by D7B radars were in widespread use in the anti-aircraft role in the German Navy and {{wipe|German Air Force}}, until replaced by Roland SAMs.<ref name="urlL/70 L70 L-70 Bofors 40mm automatic anti-aircraft gun air defence system technical data sheet">{{cite web |url=https://www.armyrecognition.com/sweden_swedish_military_army_light_heavy_weapons/l/70_l70_l-70_bofors_40mm_automatic_anti-aircraft_gun_air_defence_system_technical_data_sheet.html |title=L/70 L70 L-70 Bofors 40mm automatic anti-aircraft gun air defence system technical data sheet |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181103091918/https://www.armyrecognition.com/sweden_swedish_military_army_light_heavy_weapons/l/70_l70_l-70_bofors_40mm_automatic_anti-aircraft_gun_air_defence_system_technical_data_sheet.html |archive-date=3 November 2018 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The L/70 is also used by the Indian [[Engineering:Abhay IFV|Abhay IFV]], which carries 210 APFSDS and high-explosive rounds.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=505|title=Abhay (Fearless) Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV)|website=Military Factory|publisher=Military Factory|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190219130420/https://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=505|archive-date=19 February 2019|url-status=live}}</ref>

====DARDO====
{{Main|Engineering:DARDO}}
Breda (now Oto Melara) of Italy uses the Bofors 40&nbsp;mm L/70 gun in its anti-aircraft weapon systems Type 64, Type 106, Type 107, Type 564 and Type 520. Also they have developed a CIWS system named [[Engineering:DARDO|DARDO]] for the Italian Army and Navy. A newer development from Breda, the Fast Forty (essentially a DARDO gun mount with twin 40mm/L70 guns), has nearly doubled the rate of fire to 450 rpm (7.5 rounds per second) (2 × 450 in twin mount), normally equipped with a 736-round magazine and a dual feed mechanism for naval use.

====Other L/70 Variants====

*'''L/70 BOFI (Bofors Optronic Fire control Instrument) gun system''':&nbsp; Electro optic fire control system (with a computer and laser range finder) and proximity fused ammunition.&nbsp; A "fair weather system".{{citation needed|date=April 2020}}
*''' L/70 BOFI-R&nbsp; (All weather)''': &nbsp; Multisensor fire control system with a J band radar.&nbsp; Provides automatic acquisition and tracking with an effective range of 4&nbsp;km without external radar input.
*'''L/70 REMO (Renovation and Modernisation)''': Package aimed at extending life span and increasing effectiveness.&nbsp; Higher rate of fire, new fire control system/air burst programming, and ammunition.
*'''L/70 40mm Netherlands upgrade''': New servo system, amplifiers, increased rate of fire (to 300 rds/min), ammo racks, and diesel power unit.
*'''L/70 40mm Spanish upgrade''': &nbsp;Felis electro optic automatic tracking system (HD TV set, automatic tracking, telemetry laser, portable target designator, and radar interface)
*'''AOS 40mm L70 FADM (Field Air Defense Mount)''': Singapore Technologies electric drive aiming system
*'''TRIDON 40mm L/70''': Bofors installed Volvo 725 6x6 truck with fully enclosed, armour protected cab for a crew of five, with only two crew required.&nbsp; Did not enter service.<ref>[https://www.armyrecognition.com/sweden_swedish_military_army_light_heavy_weapons/l/70_l70_l-70_bofors_40mm_automatic_anti-aircraft_gun_air_defence_system_technical_data_sheet.html Bofors  L/70 40mm automatic anti-aircraft gun] armyrecognition.com</ref>
*'''LVS 40mm L/70''': Equipped with LVS modular fire-control system by Saab.&nbsp; Entered service with the Swedish Army and Royal Thai Army in 1994 and 1997.{{citation needed|date=April 2020}}

==Users==
{{div col|colwidth=33em}}
* {{ALG}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{ARG}}: L/60 and L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=376}}
* {{AUS}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{AUT}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{BHR}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=323}}
* {{BAN}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{BEL}}: L/70 Bofors<ref name="Wiener 1987"/>
* {{BIH}}: L/60 and L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=81}}
* {{BLZ}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{BRA}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|pp=383–384}}
* {{BRU}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{CAM}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{CAN}}: L/60 Bofors (''Boffin'')<ref name="Wiener 1987">{{cite book|title=The armies of the NATO nations: Organization, concept of war, weapons and equipment|series=Truppendienst Handbooks Volume 3|year= 1987|first=Friedrich |last=Wiener |pages=524–525|publisher=Herold Publishers|location=Vienna}}</ref>
*{{CHA}}<ref name="Chad">{{cite magazine|title=Tchad: le désert des Tartares|first=Pierre|last=Darcourt|pages=16–19|magazine=La Gazette des armes|language=fr|url=http://fr.1001mags.com/parution/gazette-des-armes/numero-125-janvier-1984/page-16-17-texte-integral|issue=125|date=January 1984|access-date=18 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181019041136/http://fr.1001mags.com/parution/gazette-des-armes/numero-125-janvier-1984/page-16-17-texte-integral|archive-date=19 October 2018|url-status=live}}</ref>
* {{CHI}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{CRO}}<ref name="MF"/>
*{{COL}}: M1A1 Bofors{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=390}}
*{{COD}}: L/60{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=441}}
** {{flag|Katanga}}: Known as ''Beaufort''<ref>{{cite book|title=Modern African Wars: The Congo 1960–2002|last=Abbot|first=Peter|location=Oxford|publisher=Osprey Publishing|date=February 2014|isbn=978-1782000761|page=14}}</ref>
* {{CYP}}: M1 Bofors{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=87}}
* {{CZE}}
* {{DEN}}: L/60 and L/70 Bofors<ref name="Wiener 1987"/>
* {{DJI}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=442}}
* {{DOM}}
* {{ECU}}: M1A1 and L/70 Bofors{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=396}}
* {{EGY}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{EST}} Used by the air defence artillery group and on submarines 
* {{FIN}}: L/60 built under license before WW2,{{sfn|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986|p=1749}} L/70 MkII in Rauma class missile corvettes and Katanpaa class minesweepers
* {{FRA}}: L/60{{sfn|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986|p=1749}} and L/70<ref name="Wiener 1987"/>
* {{GAB}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=446}}
* {{GAM}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{GER}}: L/70 built under license<ref name="Encyclopedie"/>
* {{GEO}}: Used on Coast Guard ships and vessels
* {{GUA}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{GRE}}: L/60 built under license before WW2.{{sfn|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986|p=1749}} M1 Bofors also used.<ref name="Wiener 1987"/>
* {{flag|Kingdom of Hungary (1920–46)|name=Hungary}}: L/60 built under license. Also produced Bofors armed SPAAG 40M Nimród{{sfn|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986|p=1749}}
* {{IND}}: Used both L/60 and L/70.{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|pp=257–258}} Bofors is L/70 built under license.<ref name="Encyclopedie"/>
* {{INA}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=252}}
* {{ISL}}<ref name="MF"/>
*{{IRN}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=328}}
* {{IRQ}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{ISR}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=335}}
* {{ITA}}: Bofors M1 used under designation ''Cannone contraero 40/60''.<ref name="Wiener 1987"/> L/70 built under license by Breda.<ref name="Wiener 1987"/>
* {{CIV}}: L/60{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=439}}
* {{JPN}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{JOR}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{KEN}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=451}}
* {{ROK}}: L/60, M1 and L/70 variants{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=268}}
* {{LBN}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{LBY}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{LAT}}: L/60<ref>{{cite journal|title=The military situation in the Baltic States|first=Edgars|last=Andersons|year=2001|issue=6|volume=2001|journal=Baltic Defence Review|url=http://www.bdcol.ee/files/docs/bdreview/10bdr601_backup.pdf|pages=113–153|access-date=23 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190124041412/http://www.bdcol.ee/files/docs/bdreview/10bdr601_backup.pdf|archive-date=24 January 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> and L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=115}}
* {{LTU}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{MAS}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=272}}
* {{MEX}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{MLT}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{MNE}}
* {{MYA}}: M1 Bofors{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=276}}
* {{NED}}: L/70 built under license<ref name="Encyclopedie"/>
* {{NEP}}: 2 L/60 guns{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=277}}
* {{NGR}}: L/60<ref name="auto">{{cite book|last=Jowett|first=Philip|title=Modern African Wars (5): The Nigerian-Biafran War 1967-70|year=2016|publisher=Osprey Publishing Press|location=Oxford|isbn=978-1472816092|page=20}}</ref> and L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=461}}
:* {{flag|Biafra}}: captured from Nigerian Army{{sfn|Jowett|2016|p=24}}
* {{NOR}}: L/60 built under license before WW2{{sfn|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986|p=1749}} Bofors M1 and L/70 also used.<ref name="Wiener 1987"/>
* {{NZ}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{OMN}}: L/60{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=347}}
* {{PAK}}: L/60{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=280}}
* {{PAN}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{PNG}}
* {{PAR}}: M1A1 and L/60{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=408}}
* {{PER}}: 24 Bofors L/60, originally ordered by Spain but not delivered due to the civil war.<ref name="BB72">{{cite magazine|title=Blindorama: Pérou 1936–1945|magazine=Batailles et Blindés|issue=72|date=April 2015|pages=12–13|last=Mahé|first=Yann|language=fr}}</ref>
* {{PHI}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{POL}}: L/60 built under license as '''40-mm armata przeciwlotnicza wz 36'''{{sfn|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986|p=1749}}
* {{POR}}: M1 and L/70 Bofors<ref name="Wiener 1987"/>
* {{QAT}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{ROU}}: 54 pieces delivered by Germany during the first half of World War II<ref>Mark Axworthy, London: Arms and Armour, 1995, ''Third Axis, Fourth Ally: Romanian Armed Forces in the European War, 1941–1945'', p. 30</ref>
* {{SAU}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=352}}
* {{SEN}}: L/60{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=464}}
* {{SRB}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|pp=134–135}}
* {{SGP}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{SUD}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{RSA}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{KOR}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{ESP}}: L/70 built under license<ref name="Encyclopedie"/>
* {{SRI}}{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=289}}
* {{SWE}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{CHE}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{ROC}}: L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=291}}
* {{THA}}: M1 and L/70{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|pp=293–294}}
* {{TLS}}
* {{TUR}}: Bofors M1,<ref name="Wiener 1987"/> L/60{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=146}} and L/70<ref name="Wiener 1987"/>{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=146}}
* {{UAE}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{UK}}: L/60 and L/70 built under license<ref name="Encyclopedie">{{cite encyclopedia|title=Canon antiaérien Bofors L/70 de 40 mm|language=fr | encyclopedia =Encyclopédie des armes : Les forces armées du monde|publisher=Atlas|year=1986|pages= 1859–1860|volume=II|number=21. Canons de DCA tractés modernes}}</ref>
* {{USA}}: L/60 and L/70 built under license<ref name="Encyclopedie"/>
* {{USSR}}<ref name="DIESELPUNKS">{{cite web|url=http://www.dieselpunks.org/profiles/blogs/finnish-lighthouse-battleships|title=Finnish "Lighthouse Battleships" at Dieselpunk.org|access-date=29 March 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170710233737/http://www.dieselpunks.org/profiles/blogs/finnish-lighthouse-battleships|archive-date=10 July 2017|url-status=live}}</ref>
* {{URU}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{flag|South Vietnam}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{flag|Vietnam}}<ref name="MF"/>
* {{VEN}}: L/70 and M1A1{{sfn|Military Balance 2016|p=417}}
* {{YEM}}<ref name="MF"/>
{{div col end}}

==See also==
* Bofors 57 mm gun
* Bofors 75 mm Model 1929
* [[Engineering:List of anti-aircraft guns|List of anti-aircraft guns]]
* [[Engineering:List of naval anti-aircraft guns|List of naval anti-aircraft guns]]
* ''The Bofors Gun'' – 1968 movie about British airmen in Germany (the gun serves as a framing device)

==References==
===Notes===
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=Nord2017-05-16>
{{cite news
 |url         = http://www.45enord.ca/2017/05/marine-royale-canadienne-evalue-nouveau-systeme-darmement-navires-defense-cotiere-nanuk-bofors/
 |title       = La Marine évalue un nouveau système d'armement pour ses navires de défense côtière
 |work        = 45eNord
 |author      = Nicolas le May
 |date        = 2017-05-16
 |language    = fr
 |trans-title = Navy assesses new weapons system for its coastal defense vessels
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20181121022011/http://www.45enord.ca/2017/05/marine-royale-canadienne-evalue-nouveau-systeme-darmement-navires-defense-cotiere-nanuk-bofors/
 |archive-date = 21 November 2018
 |access-date  = 2018-11-20
 |url-status     = live
 |quote       =<!-- L’enlèvement des Bofors 40 mm Modèle 60 Mk 5C a donc été approuvé le 31 juillet 2014 et les systèmes ont été enlevés depuis. Les 12 navires de la classe Kingston restent toutefois équipés de deux mitrailleuses lourdes .50cal, a confirmé à 45eNord.ca, le capitaine Rick Donnelly, de la Marine royale canadienne. -->
}}
</ref>
}}

===Bibliography===
{{refbegin}}
* {{cite encyclopedia|title=Bofors de 40 mm|language=fr | encyclopedia =Encyclopédie des armes : Les forces armées du monde|publisher=Atlas|year=1986|pages=1749–1753|volume=II|number=16. Défense contre avions 1939–1945|ref={{harvid|Encyclopédie des Armes|1986}}}}
* Bishop, C (ed.) 2002, ''Encyclopaedia of weapons of World War II'', MetroBooks, New York.
* Campbell, John. ''Naval Weapons of World War Two''. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press, 1985. {{ISBN|0-87021-459-4}}.
* Gander, T., 1990, ''The 40mm Bofors Gun'', 2nd ed., Patrick Stephens, Wellingborough, Eng.
* {{cite book|title=The Military Balance 2016|date=February 2016|volume=116|isbn=9781857438352 |publisher=Routlegde|ref={{harvid|Military Balance 2016}}|author=International Institute for Strategic Studies|}}
* Rae, CJE, Harris, AL, and Bryant, RK (1987), ''On target: the story of the 2/3 Australian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment from formation on 18 July 1940 until disbandment on 14 July 1943 and the subsequent service of 7th Battery, 8th Battery, and 9th Battery, until the end of World War II'', 2/3rd Australian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment Association, [Melbourne].
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{commons|Bofors 40 mm gun}}
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=1iYDAAAAMBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1#v=onepage&f=true 1940 ''Popular Science'' cover illustration of twin 40mm Bofors in Swedish service]
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=VCcDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA73#v=twopage&q&f=true "New Tools For Army Power", October 1941, ''Popular Science''], pp.&nbsp;73–74 on testing of U.S. version of 40mm Bofors
* [http://www.maritime.org/doc/boforstm252/index.htm 40 mm Automatic Gun M1 (AA) and 40 mm Antiaircraft Gun Carriages M2 and M2A1 TM 9-252]
* [http://maritime.org/doc/bofors40mm/index.htm 40 MM Antiaircraft Gun, OP 820, 1943 : Navy Service Manual] placed online courtesy of maritime.org
* [http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_4cm-56_mk12.htm Data and spec comparison of various marks of Bofors 40mm L/60]
* [http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNSweden_4cm-70_m1948.htm Data and Spec comparison of various marks of Bofors 40mm L/70]
* [http://www.antiaircraft.org.au/about-us/on-target/on-target Rae, CJE, Harris, A.L. & Bryant, R.K. 1987, On target: the story of the 2/3 Australian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment from formation on 18 July 1940 until disbandment on 14 July 1943 and the subsequent service of 7th Battery, 8th Battery, and 9th Battery, until the end of World War II, 2/3rd Australian Light Anti-Aircraft Regiment Association, Melbourne]


{{DEFAULTSORT:Bofors 40 Mm}}
[[Category:Autocannon]]

{{Sourceattribution|Bofors 40 mm gun|1}}