The commander of the French Navy’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier FS Charles de Gaulle, Rear Admiral Jacques Mallard, announced that the ship will be deployed to the Indo-Pacific by the end of the year as part of the so-called Clemenceau 25 Mission. Throughout the mission, the carrier will conduct three exercises with regional navies, aiming to contribute “to national and European operations and to exercises in the Indo-Pacific with France’s regional allies,” according to Mallard.
The rear admiral also outlined the general composition of the French carrier’s Escort Group, which will include a nuclear-powered attack submarine, along with frigates—presumably of the FREMM class—a fleet tanker, and support from an Atlantique 2 maritime patrol and surveillance aircraft from the French Naval Aviation, which will operate from land bases. The carrier’s support vessel is expected to be the new fleet tanker FS Jacques Chevallier (A725), delivered to the French Navy in 2023.
After completing scheduled maintenance, the Charles de Gaulle’s crew began a training and preparation phase in the Mediterranean for their upcoming Indo-Pacific deployment. This included exercises involving the ship’s embarked Air Group, composed of Rafale fighter jets, which carried out pilot qualifications, as well as E-2C Hawkeye early warning aircraft. These exercises took place in October, followed by provisioning and further preparation for deployment.
Charles de Gaulle Activity Schedule
The French carrier will depart from its base in the Arsenal of Toulon and sail through the Mediterranean. Along its route, ships and submarines from various countries will temporarily join it for PASSEX-type exercises. Naval assets from Australia, Canada, Greece, Japan, Italy, Morocco, Portugal, the United Kingdom, and the United States are expected to operate alongside the De Gaulle.
The carrier will then transit the Suez Canal to conduct operations in the Red Sea, proceeding to the Arabian Sea, where it will participate in Exercise Varuna with Indian Navy vessels and personnel.
Afterwards, the De Gaulle will join forces from India, Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, Australia, Canada, Malaysia, the United Kingdom, and the United States for the multinational La Perouse Exercise, which will be held in the Indian Ocean area, south of Indonesia and northwest of Australia’s northwest coast.
Following La Perouse, the carrier will head to waters near Guam for Exercise Pacific Steller, a “high-intensity exercise” with the JMSDF, RAN, RCN, and the U.S. Seventh Fleet. However, this schedule may be adjusted throughout the carrier’s general deployment in the Indo-Pacific, according to Mallard and the French Ministry of Armed Forces.
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