French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (R91)
F
 | |
| Career (France) |  |
|---|---|
| Name: | Charles de Gaulle (R91) |
| Namesake: | Charles de Gaulle |
| Ordered: | 3 February 1986 |
| Builder: | DCNS |
| Laid down: | 14 April 1989 |
| Launched: | 7 May 1994 |
| Commissioned: | 18 May 2001 |
| In service: | 18 May 2001 |
| Renamed: | Laid down as Richelieu, renamed Charles de Gaulle in 1987 |
| Homeport: | Toulon, France |
| Nickname: | CDG |
| Honours and awards: | Jack with the colours of the Free French Forces (front) and the ribbon of the Ordre de la Libération (back) |
| Fate: | Active in service as of 2011 |
| General characteristics | |
| Class and type: | Unique aircraft carrier |
| Displacement: | 37,085 tonnes (standard) 42,000 tonnes (full load)[1] |
| Length: | 261.5 m (858 ft) overall |
| Beam: | 64.36 m (211.2 ft) overall |
| Draught: | 9.43 m (30.9 ft) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × K15 pressurised water reactors (PWR), 150 MW each 4 × diesel-electric 2 × shafts |
| Speed: | 27 knots (50 km/h) |
| Range: | Unlimited distance; 20-25 years |
| Endurance: | 45 days of food |
| Capacity: | 800 commandos, 500 tonnes of ammunitions |
| Complement: | Ship's company: 1,350 Air wing: 600 |
| Sensors and processing systems: | DRBJ 11 B tridimensional air search radar DRBV 26D air search radar DRBV 15C low altitude air search radar Arabel target acquisition radar |
| Electronic warfare and decoys: | ARBR 21 Detector ARBB 33 Countermeasures suite ARBG2 MAIGRET Interceptor 4 × Sagaie decoys launcher SLAT (Système de lutte anti-torpille) torpedo countermeasures |
| Armament: | 4 × 8 cell A-43 Sylver launchers carrying the MBDA Aster 15 surface to air missile. 2 × 6 cell Sadral launchers carrying Mistral short range missiles 8 × Giat 20F2 20 mm cannons. |
| Aircraft carried: | 28 – 40 aircraft,[2] including * Rafale M * Super Étendard * E-2C Hawkeye * SA365 Dauphin helicopters |
The ship carries a complement of Dassault-Breguet Super Étendard, Dassault Rafale M and E-2C Hawkeye aircraft, as well as modern electronics and Aster missiles. She is a CATOBAR-type carrier that uses a shorter version of the catapult system installed on the US Nimitz class carriers, the 75 m C13-3 steam catapult.
Development
Construction
The carrier replaced Foch, a conventionally-powered aircraft carrier, in 2001. Clemenceau and Foch were completed in 1961 and 1963 respectively; the requirement for a replacement was identified in the mid-1970s.The hull was laid down in April 1989 at the DCNS Brest naval shipyard. The carrier was completed in May 1994 and at 35,500 tonnes was the largest warship launched in Western Europe since 1951.[citation needed] She was to be named Richelieu in 1986 by the French president at the time, François Mitterrand, after the famous French politician Armand-Jean du Plessis, Cardinal and Duc de Richelieu (following a traditional name for capital ships in the French Navy, see battleship Richelieu for instance).[3] On 7 February 1987, however, after a ferocious row, the name of the ship was changed to Charles de Gaulle by the Gaullist Prime Minister at the time, Jacques Chirac.
Construction quickly fell behind schedule as the project was starved of funding, which was worsened by the economic recession in the early 1990s.[citation needed] Total costs for the vessel would top €3 billion. Work on the ship was suspended altogether on four occasions: 1990, 1991, 1993 and 1995.[3] The ship was commissioned on 18 May 2001, five years behind the projected deadline.
Spying incident
In 1993, it was alleged by The Guardian that a group of engineers inspecting the vessel during her construction were British Secret Intelligence Service (MI6) operatives, believed to have been evaluating the method of shielding the nuclear reactors, amongst other technical details.[4] However, the newspaper published a denial by both the British government and the Direction de la surveillance du territoire (DST) (in English: Directorate of Territorial Surveillance) that there had been any incident.[5]Trials and technical problems
Charles de Gaulle entered sea trials in 1999. These identified the need to extend the flight deck to safely operate the E-2C Hawkeye. This operation sparked negative publicity, however, as the same tests had been conducted on both Foch and Clemenceau when the F-8E(FN) Crusader fighter had been introduced. The 5 million francs for the extension was 0.025% of the total budget for Charles de Gaulle project.
On 28 February 2000, a nuclear reactor trial triggered the combustion of additional isolation elements, producing a smoke incident.
During the night of 9 November 2000, in the Western Atlantic while en route toward Norfolk, Virginia, the port propeller broke and the ship had to return to Toulon to replace the faulty unit. The investigations that followed showed similar structural faults in the other propeller and in the spare propellers: bubbles in the one-piece copper-aluminium alloy propellers near the centre. The fault was blamed on the supplier, Atlantic Industries, which had already gone bankrupt. To make matters worse, all documents relating to the design and fabrication of the propellers had been lost in a fire. As a temporary solution, the less advanced spare propellers of Clemenceau and Foch were used, limiting the maximum speed to 24 knots (44 km/h) instead of the contractual 27 knots (50 km/h).
On 5 March 2001, Charles de Gaulle went back to sea with two older propellers and sailed 25.2 knots (47 km/h) on her trials. Between July and October, Charles de Gaulle had to be refitted once more due to abnormal noises, as loud as 100 dB, near the starboard propeller, which had rendered the aft part of the ship uninhabitable.
On 8 November 2001, a sailor performing a routine maintenance task lost consciousness due to a toxic gas leak. A non-commissioned officer attempted to rescue him and collapsed as well. They were rescued by the on-board medical team and sent to Toulon Hospital. Both survived.
Active service
Refitting
Link 16
On 11 October 2001, the frigate Cassard, four AWACS aircraft and Charles de Gaulle were involved in a successful trial of the Link 16 high-bandwidth secure data network. The network allows real-time monitoring of the airspace from the South of England to the Mediterranean Sea. The collected data were also transmitted in real time to the Jean Bart through the older Link 11 system.
Afghanistan
On 21 November 2001, France decided to send Charles de Gaulle to the Indian Ocean in support of Operation Enduring Freedom against Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. Task Force 473, with 2,900 men under the command of Contre-Amiral François Cluzel, sailed on 1 December. The task force was composed of Charles de Gaulle, frigates La Motte-Picquet, Jean de Vienne and Jean Bart, the nuclear attack submarine Rubis, the tanker Meuse and the aviso Commandant Ducuing.Embarked air power comprised sixteen Super Étendards, one E-2C Hawkeye, two Rafale Ms and several helicopters. The Super Étendards carried out their first missions above Afghanistan on 19 December, executing reconnaissance and bombing missions, covering over 3,000 kilometres. Overall they carried out 140 missions, averaging 12 every day.
In March, Super Étendards and six Mirage 2000 aircraft carried out airstrikes against targets claimed to be al Qaeda. A few targets suggested by US forces were denied out of fear of hitting civilians. Nevertheless, French involvement was complimented on 11 March 2002 by US President George W. Bush, who mentioned "our good ally, France, has deployed nearly one-fourth of its navy to support Operation Enduring Freedom".[6] At this point, the French air complement had been increased to 16 Super Étendards, 6 Mirage 2000 D, 5 Rafales, and two Hawkeye AWACS. From February, the air wings of Charles de Gaulle and USS John C. Stennis landed on each other's decks as a means of strengthening the ties between the allies.
On 2 May, Charles de Gaulle arrived in Singapore for relief and returned to Oman on 18 May.
Indian-Pakistani crisis
In June 2002 while Charles de Gaulle was in the Arabian Sea, armed Rafale fighters conducted combat air-patrols with the United States Navy off the coast of India and Pakistan,[7][8] marking a significant point in the Rafale M's operational career and its integration with the carrier.[9]Rescue mission
On 9 October, the CrossMed (The Regional Operational Centre for Monitoring and Rescue in the Mediterranean Sea) received a distress call from the 8-metre Babolin, whose hull was leaking. Charles de Gaulle, on manoeuvres in the region, sent a helicopter that airlifted the three-man crew, despite 35-knot (65 km/h) wind, troubled sea, and bad visibility.Continuing operations
Charles de Gaulle participated in further actions as part of Operation Enduring Freedom in 2005. It returned to Southwest Asia in May 2006 and shortly after supported coalition efforts over Afghanistan. The aircraft carrier regularly participates in the annual bilateral naval exercises between the Indian and French navies[10] called 'Varuna'.[11]First major overhaul
On 14 October 2010, a four month cruise was cut down to a single day when the ship suffered an electrical fault in its propulsion system.[13]
Fifth overseas deployment: Task Force 473 & Operation Agapanthus 2010
A French naval task group, designated Task Force 473, led by the Charles de Gaulle departed Toulon on 30 October 2010 for a four-month deployment, code-named Operation Agapanthus 2010, to the Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Indian Ocean. and Persian Gulf.[14][15] The task group also included the frigates Forbin and Tourville; a nuclear attack submarine Améthyste; a replenishment oiler Meuse, 3,000 sailors, and an Embarked Aviation Group (EAG) consiting of 12 Super-Étendard attack aircraft, 10 Rafale multi-role fighters, and two E-2C Hawkeye 2000 AEW aircraft.[14][16][17] The task group commander, Rear Admiral Jean-Louis Kerignard, defined force's mission as follows:
- The force would help allied navies fight piracy off the coast of Somalia and send jets to support NATO in the skies above Afghanistan."[16]
Between 7–14 January 2011, Task Force 473 participated with bilateral naval exercise, code named Varuna 10, with the Indian Navy. Indian naval units participating in Varuna 10 included the aircraft carrier Viraat, the frigates Godavari and Ganga; and the diesel-electric submarine Shalki. Varuna 10 was a two-phase naval exercise, with the harbor phase taking place between 7–11 January and the sea phase between 11–14 January in the Arabian Sea.[17][20] Task Force 473 paid a port visit to Goa between 7–14 January 2001.[21] The carrier Charles de Gaulle and the frigate Fobin also paid a goodwill visit to Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, on 30 January 2011, docking at its container terminal facilities.[22]
Operation Agapanthus 2010 concluded on 21 February 2011. Task Force 473 completed more than 1,000 flying hours flown from the Charles de Gaulle in support of NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) deployed in Afghanistan. Task Force 473 also participated in bilateral exercises with armed forces of India, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates to test the interoperability of French military forces and share expertise with the regional partners.[15]
2011 Mediterranean Operations
Further information: Opération Harmattan and 2011 military intervention in Libya
On 20 March 2011, the Charles de Gaulle was deployed to the Mediterranean Sea to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973 which called for a no-fly zone over Libya.[23] Accompanying the Charles de Gaulle were the frigates Dupleix and Aconit and the fleet replenishment tanker Meuse.[24]During Unified Protector, the air fleet has flown 1.350 sorties during the war on Libya. The CdG was then withdrawn for maintenance at Toulon on 10th August.[25]
The French Navy is theoretically a two-carrier navy, mainly to ensure that at least one ship is operational at all times even if the other is under repair. This scheme requires another aircraft carrier to be built though, as the Charles de Gaulle is the only aircraft carrier currently serving.
Cost considerations have made equipment standardization a necessity. In this context, there is a possibility of collaboration with Britain for future aircraft carriers and Thales made the design for the Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier,[26] which may be modified as the Future French aircraft carrier. Steps have been taken by both countries to make such a scenario possible: the new carrier had to be conventionally propelled to meet the requirements of the Royal Navy. France favours nuclear propulsion, and a study is being conducted to see if it is more cost efficient than gas turbines.
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