Posted on 03/20/2011 6:41:16 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
France sends carrier to Libya, conducts more flights
8:59am EDT
By Elizabeth Pineau and John Irish
PARIS (Reuters) - France sent an aircraft carrier toward Libya on Sunday and its warplanes carried out further operations over the north African country, armed forces and defense officials said.
The Charles de Gaulle carrier, the flagship of the French fleet, left the southern port of Toulon at around 1200 GMT, carrying around 1,800 crew members and some 20 aircraft.
The carrier was accompanied by an attack submarine, several frigates and a refueling ship, defense officials said.
"The French operations continue," said a source at armed forces headquarters. "French planes are in place (over Libya)."
President Nicolas Sarkozy's government, alongside Britain, was at the forefront of a campaign to win U.N. backing for a no-fly zone over Libya and to build an international coalition for military strikes to enforce it.
French planes fired the first shots on Saturday in the campaign to force Muammar Gaddafi's troops to cease fire and end attacks on civilians.
FILLIP FOR SARKOZY
France's leadership in the diplomatic and military arenas appeared to have rallied public opinion behind President Nicolas Sarkozy, whose approval ratings have been languishing near record lows ahead of presidential elections early next year.
Elections for local councilors
(Excerpt) Read more at reuters.com ...
Click on pic for past Navair pings.
Post or FReepmail me if you wish to be enlisted in or discharged from the Navair Pinglist.
The only requirement for inclusion in the Navair Pinglist is an interest in Naval Aviation.
This is a medium to low volume pinglist.
isnt this the carrier that they cant land on but can take off from?
I hope they replaced all the armour-plated glass in the tower...as was frosted over so they coundn't seen where they were going.
In other news, France has a (small) aircraft carrier!
Instead of naming it the De Gaulle, maybe they should have named it the Chauchat.
Hopefully the Libyans won't send one of their Fast Attack Craft's. I'd hate for the French to surrender.
Maybe the rudder won’t fall off on this cruise.
It's not that small:
carrying around 1,800 crew members and some 20 aircraft as well as 50,000 cases of wine and 3 white flags.
Who EXACTLY is leading this gallant campaign against Libya?
—
A multinational committee holed up on some ship in the US Navy, each member of said committee hoping the American will not hand over command to him?
AS do the Spanish and Italians. They all should be over there participating, since otherwise they’re doing nothing.
carrying around 1,800 crew members and some 20 aircraft as well as 50,000 cases of wine and 3 white flags.
About the same displacement as a WWII acc (minus the wine and surrender flags). The Reagan is 113,000 tons vs 37,000 of the CDG.
Reagan:Ship's company: 3,200 Air wing: 2,480
CDG: Ship's company: 1,350 Air wing: 600
Reagan 90 aircraft, CDG 28-35 aircraft
Top speed: CDG: 27 knots Reagan: 30+ (or the same as De Gaulle, while dragging its anchors)
I hope they don't drop another propeller.
isnt this the carrier that they cant land on but can take off from?
I'm detecting a rather puuuur attitude on this thread, toward our gallant allies the French! What did they ever do to us? .... except undercut us like Weedeaters on Iraq (because key ministers were taking side cash from Saddam) .... and give the Izzies grief in the U.N., siding with the Arab mass-homicidal maniacs against the only functional democracy in the Middle East?
On the other hand, the French have been quietly sitting on Khaddafy's face for about 30 years, whenever he tried to expand into central Africa (in Chad, e.g.). They bombed him a few times down there when he got uppity.
Well, showing off the navalized Rafale is a fair exercise (they're trying to sell them to the Indians and other customers).... but I wonder why they only brought 20 a/c, since the Chuck is capable of carrying almost twice that many.
The photo shows a Hawkeye on the flight deck, which is interesting. That shows they can operate the ungainlier, larger types as well. Which is not unexpected, since the Chucky Cheese-Eater is about the size of a Midway-class CV.
And btw a U.S. carrier of that class once completed an exercise demonstrating an ability to land and fly off C-130's (thread here on FR), in the early 60's.
Was a Forrestal class CV IIRC - the first supercarrier, and larger than either the de Gaulle or the Midway.
I recall now, it was one of the Forrestals -- maybe the Forrestal, not sure now.
There was a thread about it on FR.
She was also 972' long.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.