Exercise Saif Sareea II, also known as "Operation Swift Sword II", was a major military exercise in September and October 2001 involving the military of the United Kingdom

United Kingdom

The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 and Oman

Oman

Oman , officially called the Sultanate of Oman , is an Arab state in southwest Asia on the southeast coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It is bordered by the United Arab Emirates to the northwest, Saudi Arabia to the west, and Yemen to the southwest. The coast is formed by the Arabian Sea on the...

. It was the largest single deployment of UK forces since the Gulf War

Gulf War

The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...

. Over 22,500 personnel, 6,500 vehicles, 21 naval vessels, 49 fixed wing aircraft and 44 helicopters were deployed; compared with the previous largest force of around 5,000 personnel.

The presence of such a large military force in the Middle East gave United Kingdom and United States commanders important assets for conducting the war against the Taliban government in Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

, the UK contribution to which was known as Operation Veritas

Operation Veritas

Operation Veritas was the codename used for British military operations against the Taliban government of Afghanistan in 2001. British forces played a supporting role to the American Operation Enduring Freedom. In addition, the British contribution was an important part of the overall forces deployed...

.

Objectives

• To test the UK's expeditionary warfare strategy, particularly the effectiveness of the tri-service Joint Rapid Reaction Force.
• Highlight shortcomings in equipment and practices of such a deployment
• Provide training
• Support foreign policy objectives (co-operation and maintain relationships with allies in the Persian Gulf
  Persian Gulf
  The Persian Gulf, in Southwest Asia, is an extension of the Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.The Persian Gulf was the focus of the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War, in which each side attacked the other's oil tankers...
  
   region)

Results

This exercise illustrated a number of problems in the British Army; the traditional "make-do" attitude to shortages of modern equipment and essential spares fell down in the face of the Omani weather.

• Soldiers who had not been issued with desert boots suffered from foot problems as their combat boots melted in the heat.
• The 66 Challenger 2 tank
  Challenger 2 tank
  FV4034 Challenger 2 is a British main battle tank currently in service with the armies of the United Kingdom and Oman. It was designed and built by the British company Vickers Defence Systems . The manufacturer advertises it as the world's most reliable main battle tank...
  
  s suffered from poor reliability. This was not due to any inherent defect with the tank, but rather due to the failure of the Army to adequately 'desertise' the tanks (apparently on grounds of cost). The failure to fit appropriate filters led to substantial engine damage due to the ingress of sand and dust. Two squadrons of tanks were withdrawn from the exercise.
• The SA80A1
  SA80
  The SA80 is a British family of 5.56mm small arms. It is a selective fire, gas-operated assault rifle. SA80 prototypes were trialled in 1976 and production was completed in 1994....
  
   rifle (the unmodified variant) suffered stoppages and jamming due to sand and dust ingress.

Some of these problems - mostly with Challenger 2 and the AS-90

AS-90

The AS-90 is a lightly armoured self-propelled artillery piece used by the British Army. It was first delivered in 1993...

 self-propelled gun were fixed in time for the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Some equipment performed extremely well in the operation.

• The then recently introduced C-17
  C-17 Globemaster III
  The Boeing C-17 Globemaster III is a large military transport aircraft. Developed for the United States Air Force from the 1980s to the early 1990s by McDonnell Douglas, the C-17 is used for rapid strategic airlift of troops and cargo to main operating bases or forward operating bases throughout...
  
   provided a level of strategic lift not previously available to the RAF.

Royal Air Force

• Tornado GR4
• Harrier GR7
  RAF Harrier II
  The British Aerospace/McDonnell Douglas Harrier II is a second-generation vertical/short takeoff and landing jet aircraft used previously by the Royal Air Force and, between 2006–2010, the Royal Navy. Derived from the McDonnell Douglas AV-8B Harrier II, which was a development of the Hawker...
  
  
• Tornado F3
• Chinook
  RAF Chinook
  The Boeing Chinook is a tandem rotor helicopter operated by the Royal Air Force. A series of variants based on the United States Army's Boeing CH-47 Chinook, the RAF Chinook fleet is the largest outside the United States...
  
  
• E-3 Sentry AEW
  E-3 Sentry
  The Boeing E-3 Sentry is an airborne warning and control system developed by Boeing as the prime contractor. Derived from the Boeing 707, it provides all-weather surveillance, command, control and communications, and is used by the United States Air Force , NATO, Royal Air Force , French Air Force...
  
  
• Puma helicopter
  Aérospatiale Puma
  The Aérospatiale SA 330 Puma is a four-bladed, twin-engined medium transport/utility helicopter. The Puma was originally manufactured by Sud Aviation of France.-Development:...
  
  
• C-130 Hercules
  C-130 Hercules
  The Lockheed C-130 Hercules is a four-engine turboprop military transport aircraft designed and built originally by Lockheed, now Lockheed Martin. Capable of using unprepared runways for takeoffs and landings, the C-130 was originally designed as a troop, medical evacuation, and cargo transport...
  
  
• VC10
• Nimrod MR2

Royal Navy

• HMS Illustrious
  HMS Illustrious (R06)
  HMS Illustrious is the second of three Invincible-class light aircraft carriers built for the Royal Navy in the late 1970s and early 1980s. She is the fifth warship and second aircraft carrier to bear the name Illustrious, and is affectionately known as "Lusty" to her crew...
  
   (Aircraft Carrier
  Aircraft carrier
  An aircraft carrier is a warship designed with a primary mission of deploying and recovering aircraft, acting as a seagoing airbase. Aircraft carriers thus allow a naval force to project air power worldwide without having to depend on local bases for staging aircraft operations...
  
  )
• HMS Cornwall
  HMS Cornwall (F99)
  The sixth HMS Cornwall was a Batch 3 Type 22 frigate of the British Royal Navy. She was the first Batch 3 to be built, and the last to decommission...
  
   (Type 22 frigate
  Type 22 frigate
  The Type 22 Broadsword class is a class of frigate built for the British Royal Navy. Fourteen of the class were built in total, with production divided into three batches. With the decommissioning of HMS Cornwall on 30 June 2011, the final Type 22 of the Royal Navy was retired from service...
  
  )
• HMS Monmouth
  HMS Monmouth (F235)
  HMS Monmouth is the sixth Type 23 frigate of the Royal Navy. She is the seventh ship to bear the name and was launched by Lady Eaton in 1991, being commissioned two years later....
  
   (Type 23 frigate
  Type 23 frigate
  The Type 23 frigate is a class of frigate built for the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom. All the ships were first named after British Dukes, thus the class is also known as the Duke class. The first Type 23 was commissioned in 1989, and the sixteenth, was launched in May 2000 and commissioned in...
  
  )
• HMS Fearless
  HMS Fearless (L10)
  HMS Fearless was a Royal Navy ship which served from 1965 until 2002. One of two from the Landing Platform Dock class she was based in HMNB Portsmouth and saw service around the world over her 37 year life...
  
   (Landing Platform Dock)
• HMS Ocean
  HMS Ocean (L12)
  HMS Ocean of the Royal Navy is an amphibious assault ship , the sole member of her class. She is designed to support amphibious landing operations and to support the staff of Commander UK Amphibious Force and Commander UK Landing Force...
  
   (Landing Platform Helicopter)
• HMS Marlborough
  HMS Marlborough (F233)
  HMS Marlborough was a 'Duke'-class Type 23 frigate of the Royal Navy, and the sixth ship to bear the name. She was named after John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough.-History:...
  
   (Type 23)
• HMS Southampton
  HMS Southampton (D90)
  HMS Southampton was a batch two Type 42 destroyer of the Royal Navy. She was named after the city of Southampton, England, and built by Vosper Thornycroft, in Southampton...
  
   (Type 42 destroyer
  Type 42 destroyer
  The Type 42 or Sheffield class, are guided missile destroyers used by the British Royal Navy and the Argentine Navy. The first ship of the class was ordered in 1968 and launched in 1971, and today three ships remain active in the Royal Navy and one in the Argentinian Navy...
  
  )
• HMS Nottingham
  HMS Nottingham (D91)
  HMS Nottingham was a batch two Type 42 destroyer of the Royal Navy, named after the city of Nottingham, England. She was launched on 18 February 1980, and commissioned on 8 April 1983 as the sixth ship to bear the name....
  
   (Type 42)
• HMS Inverness (Mine Countermeasures Vessel (MCMV)
• HMS Cattistock
  HMS Cattistock (M31)
  HMS Cattistock , the third ship of this name, is a Hunt-class minesweeper of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1981 and commissioned on 5 March 1982, the third ship of her class....
  
   (MCMV)
• HMS Quorn
  HMS Quorn (M41)
  HMS Quorn , the third ship of this name, is a Hunt-class minesweeper of the Royal Navy. She was launched on 23 January 1988, the last ship of her class....
  
   (MCMV)
• HMS Walney
  HMS Walney (M104)
  HMS Walney was a Sandown-class minehunter of the British Royal Navy. She was the fourth of the Sandown-class minehunters, and the second ship to carry the name, which comes from the island off Barrow-in-Furness in Cumbria on the north-west coast of England.-Career:She was launched on 25 November...
  
   (MCMV)
• HMS Beagle
  HMS Beagle (A319)
  HMS Beagle was a Bulldog class coastal survey vessel of the Royal Navy.She was originally to have been called HMS Barracouta but her name was changed to HMS Beagle in honour of the ship which carried Charles Darwin....
  
   (Coastal Survey Vessel)
• HMS Roebuck
  HMS Roebuck (H130)
  HMS Roebuck was a coastal survey vessel of the Royal Navy . She was commissioned in 1986, and was the last traditional survey ship to join the fleet. Although nominally used for surveying along the United Kingdom continental shelf, with the downsizing of the survey fleet, Roebuck was enhanced to...
  
   (Hydrographic Survey Vessel)
• RFA Fort Victoria
  RFA Fort Victoria (A387)
  RFA Fort Victoria is a Fort Class combined fleet stores ship and tanker of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary of the United Kingdom tasked with providing ammunition, fuel, food and other supplies to Royal Navy vessels around the world....
  
   (Auxiliary Oiler Replenishment)
• RFA Fort Rosalie
  RFA Fort Rosalie (A385)
  RFA Fort Rosalie is a fleet stores ship of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary. Fort Rosalie was originally named RFA Fort Grange, but was renamed in May 2000 to avoid confusion with RFA Fort George, a change which was not universally popular.-History:Fort Rosalie was laid down in 1973, by Scott Lithgow on...
  
   (Stores Ship)
• RFA Sir Tristram
  RFA Sir Tristram (L3505)
  RFA Sir Tristram is a Landing Ship Logistics of the Round Table class. She was launched in 1966, and accepted into British Army service in 1967. As with others of her class, she was transferred to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary in 1970...
  
   (Landing Ship Logistic)
• RFA Sir Galahad
  RFA Sir Galahad (1987)
  RFA Sir Galahad was a landing ship logistics of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, currently in service with the Brazilian Navy as the Garcia D'Avila.-History:...
  
   (Landing Ship Logistic)
• RFA Sir Percivale
  RFA Sir Percivale (L3036)
  RFA Sir Percivale is a Round Table class landing ship logistics. She originally entered British Army service in 1968, managed for the Ministry of Transport by British India Steam Navigation Company, but was taken over by the Royal Fleet Auxiliary along with the other members of the class in 1970...
  
   (Landing Ship Logistic)
• RFA Sir Bedivere
  RFA Sir Bedivere (L3004)
  RFA Sir Bedivere was a Landing Ship Logistic of the Round Table class. She saw service in the Falklands War, the Persian Gulf and Sierra Leone. In 2009 she was commissioned into the Brazilian Navy, and renamed NDCC Almirante Saboia -History:The ship was originally built for army service, and...
  
   (Landing Ship Logistic)
• RFA Oakleaf
  RFA Oakleaf (A111)
  The RFA Oakleaf is a Leaf-class fleet support tanker, formerly of the Royal Fleet Auxiliary, and the second ship to bear the name.Formerly the Swedish vessel MV Oktania, built by A. B...
  
   (Support Tanker vessel)
• FA2 Sea Harrier
  BAE Sea Harrier
  The British Aerospace Sea Harrier is a naval VTOL/STOVL jet fighter, reconnaissance and attack aircraft, a development of the Hawker Siddeley Harrier. It first entered service with the Royal Navy in April 1980 as the Sea Harrier FRS1 and became informally known as the "Shar"...
  
  
• Sea King HAS Mk6
• Sea King Mk4
• Gazelle AH1
• Lynx Mk7
• Sea King AEW Mk 2