France confirms plan for new aircraft carrier to replace Charles de Gaulle
PARIS: France will build a new, larger and more modern aircraft carrier to replace the ageing Charles de Gaulle, President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday (Dec 21), confirming a long-planned programme aimed at strengthening the country’s maritime power.
The project, known as Porte-Avions Nouvelle Génération (PANG), is expected to cost about 10.25 billion euros (US$12 billion). The French government said the carrier would enter service in 2038, when the Charles de Gaulle is due to be retired.
Work on nuclear propulsion components began last year, officials said, while the final order for construction must be placed under the 2025 budget. Once completed, the ship would be the largest warship ever built in Europe.
MACRON ADDRESSES TROOPS IN GULF
Macron confirmed the decision while addressing French troops stationed at a military base in Abu Dhabi, near the Strait of Hormuz, a key chokepoint for global oil flows.
“The decision to launch this vast programme was taken this week,” Macron said, adding that it would also boost France’s industrial base, particularly small and medium-sized firms involved in defence manufacturing.
Army Minister Catherine Vautrin said in a post on X that the new carrier would replace the Charles de Gaulle, which entered service in 2001 after more than a decade of planning and construction.
ROLE IN EUROPEAN DEFENCE
The PANG programme is central to France’s nuclear deterrent and to Europe’s push for greater defence autonomy, particularly against the backdrop of Russia’s war in Ukraine and concerns about reduced US commitment to European security.
France, the European Union’s only nuclear-armed state, is among a small group of European countries that operate aircraft carriers, alongside Britain, Italy and Spain. Even so, European carrier capabilities remain limited compared with the United States, which operates 11 carriers, and China, which has three.
Armed forces chief Fabien Mandon told lawmakers earlier that France would procure electromagnetic catapult systems from the United States for the new carrier, citing cost and scheduling constraints that rule out domestic production.
Some lawmakers from the political centre and moderate left have urged the government to consider postponing the project due to pressure on public finances, but Macron’s remarks signalled the administration’s determination to press ahead.
