I knew Saab made fine cars and even finer fighter jets but I wasn’t quite familiar with its other products, namely its man-portable weapons systems, including the AT4 84mm recoilless anti-tank rocket. As advertised on its website, “Using AT4 CS AST the soldier will always have access to an accurate and easily used weapon with the capability to defeat the multitude of targets that characterise the close combat of urban operations.” And more, “The tandem warhead of AT4 CS AST is designed to be able to defeat a large number of different targets, ranging from an enemy position behind heavy brick or reinforced concrete walls, to an enemy within a field fortification or in a light armoured vehicle. Depending on the gunner’s choice of fuze setting using the weapon mode selector, the main charge will either detonate in the building wall or in the room behind, creating a new point of entry.” And finally: “AT4 CS AST combines the firepower of the tandem warhead with the ability to fire from confined spaces and other narrow firing positions. Where conventional shoulder launched weapons would force the gunner to leave cover for a more open and exposed firing position, the unique internal ballistic design of the AT4 CS systems allows maximum use of the protection offered by the urban environment.” How cool is that? There are even variations, such as the AT4 HEAT Light Anti-Armour Weapon, which is “just as effective against landing craft, aircraft and helicopters as well as armoured vehicles. It can also be employed for protecting fixed defence installations, supply points and other vital assets.” And then there’s the AT4 CS HP: “Its special internal ballistics allows it to be fired from confined spaces, thick jungle, in front of obstacles or with own troops in close vicinity. The AT4 CS HP is preloaded with a specially developed high penetration warhead that produces an armour-penetration effect that greatly exceeds 500 mm, making it highly lethal against most types of targets on the battlefield.” The operative words are “thick jungle.” Because a whole stash of AT4’s (not sure which variant) have been seized by the Colombian government from FARC terrorists. Which is not cool. Not that Saab Bofors Dynamics is selling such nifty weapons to terrorists. But in tracing the serial numbers, Colombian authorities say the rocket launchers were sold to Venezuela. In Saab’s defense, however, the Swedes stopped selling to Venezuela in 2006. The Swedish Foreign Ministry and the Colombians are trying to figure out how this happened. The only seeming explanation is that the weapons somehow passed from Venezuelan to FARC hands. Chavez denies this vehemently. His minister of the interior and justice told a news conference that “to me it seems that this is a new attack against our government based on lies” and “it’s laughable. It sounds like a cheap film made by the American government.” First of all, the American government doesn’t make commercial films. Second, there’s no way such a film would be cheap. It would probably be directed by Michael Bay.
