Thumrait

Thumrait is a small town in southern Oman on the main road which links Dhofar to the rest of Oman. In ancient times Thumrait was an important point on the caravan routes through the Arabian peninsula. Frankincense trees used to grow in abundance although now they are fewer in number. The main occupation of the people of Thumrait is the cultivation of fruit, vegetables and animal fodder.

Thumrait is notable for its Royal Air Force of Oman station. This former oil depot was initially fortified as the guarantor of Omani airspace in the south of the country. At first, Hawker Hunter FG.9 aircraft constituted a deterrent force with ground attack and intercept capabilities. In 1977 the strike capability was enhanced by the addition of 12 new SEPECAT Jaguar aircraft.

The US Air Force 1660th Tactical Airlift Wing (Provisional) deployed to Thumrait AB, Oman to support Operations DESERT SHIELD and DESERT STORM.

On 1l August 1990 Royal Air Force Vickers VC10 tankers accompanied 12 Royal Air Force (UK) SEPECAT Jaguars into Thumrait and set up a detachment at the Omani airfield. An RAF aircraft had deployed there in January 1988 to provide AAR training to the Omani Jaguar squadron based there. However, the base was not well suited to the handling of large aircraft for extended periods and on 29 August 1990 the three aircraft detachment moved to Seeb near Muscat.

Thumrait AB has also been used and is still used by US and Allied air forces in Gulf War 2 and operations against Afghanistan and international terrorists. Many of those operations have currently switched to the better positioned Muscat International Airport in the North of the country, as this is closer to the theatre of operations.

Thumrait is also a Harvest Falcon depot. ‘Harvest Falcon’ is the US Air Force's transportable system of modular personnel tents, shelters, equipment, and vehicles to be used when there are infrastructure limitations. The Harvest Falcon equipment is an 1,100-person housekeeping set of tents, electrical generators and billets.

A US Air Force War Reserve Materiel (WRM) contract was let to DynCorp Technical Services to provide support for bare base systems, medical, munitions, fuels mobility support equipment, vehicles, rations, aerospace ground equipment, air base operability equipment, and associated spares and other consumables at Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO) Air Base, Thumrait. These services include maintaining war reserve materiel (WRM) stored at Thumrait. ‘War reserve materiel’ includes medical supplies, munitions, rations, and various other supplies.

Exercises held at Thumrait Air Base

The US Air Force's 16th Special Operations Wing, 823rd 'Red Horse' Squadron deployed to Thumrait on 17 April 1996 for an exercise with the Omani military called Eastern Castle, helping build runway and apron extensions and installing overhead lighting in aircraft hangars. Members of the 28th Air Expeditionary Wing departed from Ellsworth AFB, SD on 21 November 1998, enroute to their deployed site, Thumrait AB, Oman.

A total of eight Rockwell B-1 Lancers (of the 28th AEW) were based at Diego Garcia until mid-December 2001. The 28th AEW was moved out of Diego Garcia in mid-December and relocated at a base closer to Afghanistan. USAF documents post-1 January refer to the 405th AEW and all photos show a desert-like surrounding. This seems to indicate that B-1Bs are now operating from Oman.

Exercise Saif Sareea 2 (Swift Sword 2) was a major bilateral military exercise between the UK and Oman which was held in Oman between September and November 2001. The exercise involved a combination of His Majesty the Sultan's Armed Forces and Her Majesty's UK Armed Forces who will train together on land, at sea and in the air. It was the latest in the UK's series of major training exercises which are held approximately every four years. The aim of the exercise was to deploy, sustain, exercise and recover a medium scale warfighting Joint Task Force at strategic distance into a key strategic area, as identified in the Strategic Defence Review, in order to demonstrate the Joint Rapid Reaction Force Concept. The LAND component comprised 1 (UK) Armoured Division HQ, 4 Armoured Brigade and the necessary supporting elements. The Helicopter Force, consisting of approximately 500 personnel, initially deployed to RAFO THUMRAIT between 20 August and 3 September 2001. They would be operating from various locations throughout Oman in order to support the exercise, with other Support Helicopter (SH) assets operating in support of the Special Forces (SF) and Maritime components. Officer Commanding 33 Squadron, Wing Commander Baz North, was appointed as the Support Helicopter Force Commander for the duration of Exercise SAIF SAREEA II. His task was to exercise co-ordinating authority and functional control for all JHC Force Elements and aircraft at RAFO Thumrait and at sites where JHC assets were co-located.^[1]

In 2009, Indian Air Force pilots of ‘Flaming Arrows’ and ‘Cobras’, the two SEPECAT Jaguar Squadrons participated in joint exercises called ‘Eastern Bridge’ alongside the Royal Air Force of Oman (RAFO)'s force of SEPECAT Jaguars and General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcons at Thumrait Air Base. A subsequent Indo-Omani exercise, ‘Eastern Bridge-II,’ took place in 2011 at Indian Air Force Station Jamnagar (Gujarat).^[2][3]

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