Design
The French carrier would be built by an alliance of Thales and DCNS from their proposed design: a 283 m long, 75,000 tonnes variant of the CVF. While the UK in-service dates of 2014 and 2016 for their two carriers have been announced, the construction timetable for the French ship has not been disclosed. Charles de Gaulle will require refit and refuelling of her nuclear reactors around 2015.
The UK has chosen to continue to use STOVL aircraft for its new carrier; however, the design could be reconfigured for future CATOBAR operation. The French version is designed to operate the Dassault Rafale, the E-2C Hawkeye and the NH-90. It is a CATOBAR design, using catapult of the same models as those installed on the Nimitz-class supercarriers: C13-2 steam catapults, 90m long. The vessels are expected to be capable of carrying over 32 Rafales, three Hawkeyes and five NH-90s support/anti-submarine helicopters. The crew will be about 1650, instead of 1950 in the Charles de Gaulle, indicating the high level of automation integrated into the ship's systems.
Read more about this topic: Future French Aircraft Carrier
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