Category:Exercise Magic Carpet

British English: Exercise Magic Carpet is a military exercise hosted in Oman. The 2005 iteration, Exercise Magic Carpet 05 (MC 05) was Omani hosted, but sponsored by RAF Strike Command from the United Kingdom. The exercise was an opportunity for Royal Navy (RN), Royal Air Force (RAF), Royal Air Force of Oman, French Air Force, United States Air Force, and United States Navy squadrons to deploy and practice heavy-weapon bomb drops, utilising the extensive ranges and relatively clear airspace available over Oman. There were a variety of aircraft which took part, including British Sea Harriers, GR7s and SKASaC, USN F18 and S3 Viking, USAF F16, French Mirage 2000, and RAF Tornado F3, Jaguar, VC10 air to air refuelling, and E3D AWACS. In total, around 60 aircraft were in theatre, allowing for realistic exercising of a coalition forces. The participation of HMS Invincible with her Tailored Air Group (TAG) gave an excellent opportunity to prove the Strike Carrier concept within a controlled exercise environment and gain some useful general warfare training. It was be a good opportunity for the ship's company to progress training in an exercise environment.