FS Charles de Gaulle

Active Service

Refitting

On 16 September 2001, slightly abnormal radioactivity levels aboard the Charles De Gaulle, probably due to a faulty isolation element, were reported by the French press.

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While the USA were preparing their retaliation for the attack of the 11th of September 2001 in the form of "Operation Enduring Freedom", the media complained about the lack of deployable French military power. At the same time, the Defence Commission reported the maintenance of the Fleet to be substandard. In this context, the Charles De Gaulle, then under repairs, was again object of criticism, former president Valéry Giscard d'Estaing mentioning a "half-aircraft-carrier".

Related Topics:
Attack of the 11th of September 2001 - Operation Enduring Freedom - Valéry Giscard d'Estaing

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Liaison 16

On 11 October 2001, the Cassard frigate, four AWACS aircraft and the Charles De Gaulle were involved in a successful trial of the "Liaison 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 transmited in real time to the Jean Bart through the older "Liaison 11" system.

Related Topics:
11 October - Cassard - AWACS - Mediterranean Sea - Jean Bart

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Gas incident

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 immediately rescued by the onboard medical team and sent to Toulon Hospital. Both survived.

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Afghanistan : Mission Héracles

On 21 November 2001, France decided to send the Charles De Gaulle to the Indian Ocean to support UN operations against Afghanistan.

Related Topics:
21 November - Indian Ocean - Afghanistan

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Task Force 473, with 2900 men under command of Contre-Amiral François Cluzel sailed on 1 December. The task force comprised of the nuclear aircraft carrier 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.

Related Topics:
Contre-Amiral - 1 December - La Motte-Picquet - Jean de Vienne - Jean Bart - Rubis - Meuse - Aviso - Commandant Ducuing

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The air power comprised 16 Super Étendards, one E-2C Hawkeye, two Rafale and several helicopters.

Related Topics:
Super Étendard - E-2C Hawkeye - Rafale

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[[Image:Fleet_5_nations.jpg|thumb|A rare occurrence of a 5-country multinational fleet, during Operation Enduring Freedom in the Oman Sea. From the upper left to the bottom right:

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FS De Grasse, USS John C. Stennis, USS Port Royal, Charles De Gaulle (R 91), HMS Ocean, FS Surcouf, USS John F. Kennedy, HNLMS Van Amstel and ITS Luigi Durand de la Penne (18th of April 2002).]]

Related Topics:
FS ''De Grasse'' - USS ''John C. Stennis'' - USS ''Port Royal'' - ''Charles De Gaulle (R 91)'' - HMS ''Ocean'' - FS ''Surcouf'' - USS ''John F. Kennedy'' - HNLMS ''Van Amstel''

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On 17 December, 2001, Task Force 473 was integrated in an international force, alongside USS Theodore Roosevelt and USS John C. Stennis aeronaval groups, and the Italian Giuseppe Garibaldi. The force included over 100 French, US, Canadian, British, German, Italian, Dutch, Australian, Spanish and Japanese ships under a centralised inter-allied command in Bahrain.

Related Topics:
17 December - USS ''Theodore Roosevelt'' - USS ''John C. Stennis'' - Giuseppe Garibaldi - Bahrain

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Super Étendard aircraft carried out their first missions above Afghanistan on 19 December, executing reconnaissance and bombing missions, covering over 3000 kilometres. Overall they carried out 140 missions, averaging 12 every day, dodging five Stinger missiles.

Related Topics:
19 December - Stinger

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On 18 February 2002, a Helios observation satellite spotted abnormal activities near Gardez. The next day, after US Special Forces in the region confirmed these observations, the Charles De Gaulle launched two reconnaissance Super Étendards. On the 20th, British and US forces entered the valley, and on 2 March, "Operation Anaconda" began.

Related Topics:
18 February - 2002 - Helios - Gardez - 2 March - Operation Anaconda

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In March, Super Étendards and 6 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 by the US President George W. Bush, mentioning "our good ally, France, who deployed a quarter of her Navy in Operation Enduring Freedom" (11 March 2002)http://www.brookings.edu/fp/cusf/analysis/shapiro.pdf. At this point, the French air complement had been increased to 16 Super Étendards, 6 Mirage 2000 D, 5 Rafale, two KC-135 air tankers, and two Hawkeye AWACS. From February, the Charles De Gaulle and the USS John C. Stennis exchanged a few aircraft as a means of strengthening the ties between the allies.

Related Topics:
Mirage 2000 - Al Qaeda - George W. Bush - 11 March - KC-135

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On 2 May, the Charles De Gaulle arrived in Singapore for a relief, and returned to Oman on 18th. At the same time, tension began to increase over the question of Iraq; Vice-Amiral Francois Cluzel declared before the press: "France is opposed to any military action against Iraq. Should anything of this nature be undertaken, we would be unlikely to be part of the coalition".

Related Topics:
2 May - Singapore - Oman

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Indian-Pakistani crisis

From 9–19 June 2002, the Charles De Gaulle and her group carried out interposition missions to ease the tensions between India and Pakistan over Kashmir. The Rafales patroled the Indian and Pakistani coasts, armed with live air-air munitions, with the aim of preventing incidents such as in 1999 when a Pakistani Breguet Atlantique coming from the sea, possibly on an intelligence mission, was shot down by Indian forces.

Related Topics:
9 - 19 June - India - Pakistan - Kashmir - Breguet Atlantique

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Rescue mission

On 9 October, the CrossMed (Regional Operational Centre for Monitoring and Rescue in Mediterranean Sea) received a distress call on the 8-metre Babolin, whose hull was leaking. The Charles De Gaulle, on manouvers in the region, sent a helicopter which airlifted the three-man crew, in spite of a 35-knot wind, troubled sea and bad visibility.

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