Future French aircraft carrier

A new generation of aircraft carrier developed both for the French Marine nationale based on the Thales design for a UK future aircraft carrier, CV(F). The vessel will displace approximately 50,000 tonnes—almost three times the displacement of the current British Invincible-class carriers. The carrier will be based in Toulon, Var, France. The requirement for the carriers was confirmed by Jacques Chirac in 2004 for the centennial of the Entente Cordiale.

Related Topics:
Aircraft carrier - Marine nationale - CV(F) - ''Invincible''-class - Toulon - Var - France - Jacques Chirac - Entente Cordiale

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An alliance of Thales and DCN will develop and build the aircraft carriers from the BMT design selected for the CVF. While the UK in-service dates of 2012 and 2015 for their two carriers have been announced, the construction timetable for the French ship has not been disclosed although 2015 is rumored.

Related Topics:
Thales - DCN

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The French and British vessels will be the largest and most powerful surface warships outside of the US Navy. They are designed to operate the Lockheed Martin F-35 (JSF) and the Dassault Rafale for standard version and the F-35B STOVL variant the initial UK version of the carrier. The vessels are expected to be capable of carrying 48 F-35s or a similar quantity of Dassault Rafales, four airborne-early-warning (AEW) aircraft and six support/anti-submarine helicopters, for example the AgustaWestland EH101. The crew will be about 600, only 15 more than the Invincible, indicating the high level of automation being integrated into the ships' systems.

Related Topics:
US Navy - Lockheed Martin - F-35 - Dassault Rafale - AEW - AgustaWestland EH101

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The French decision comes as a result of the centennial of entente cordiale. To proceed to the construction of the aircraft carrier however has aroused numerous controversies in France where the idea to renounce nuclear propulsion in order to favour British needs is seen as a backward step for French technology. However, the numerous problems with the propulsion system of the FS Charles de Gaulle and the fact that the design was tailored to the Royal Navy's requirements leaves little choice.

Related Topics:
Entente cordiale - Nuclear propulsion - FS ''Charles de Gaulle'' - Royal Navy

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The Ministry of Defence decided not to use nuclear propulsion for the aircraft carrier because of high costs. The carrier's propulsion system will be Integrated Full Electric Propulsion (IFEP) based on four gas turbines. It is expected that the Royal Navy will continue its investment in the WR-21 advanced cycle gas turbine engines for the carrier. The optimum location for the position of the main propulsion system is being examined, with maximising the hangar space below decks a major consideration. The range of the carrier will be 10,000 nautical miles (19,000 km).

Related Topics:
Gas turbine - WR-21

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The construction of the hull will involve a series of superblocks that will be joined to form the ensemble of the structure, so as to obtain a significant cost reduction of production.

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