Exercise Swarmer

Exercise SWARMER (also known as Operation SWARMER) was a large-scale military exercise conducted in the spring of 1950 by the United States Air Force, United States Army, and United States Navy in the area of Fort Bragg, North Carolina in the southeastern United States. SWARMER was designed to test the capability of the Air Force and Army to operate and maintain an airhead, a base secured in enemy territory where troops and supplies could be received and evacuated by air, under simulated combat conditions. This was also the first tactical use of the strategic airlift technique, intending to apply lessons learned during the Berlin Airlift to battlefield logistics.

Starting on 24 April 1950 and running through 8 May 1950, the exercise took place over ten days and involved over 60,000 personnel.