Posted on 04/23/2018 4:10:55 PM PDT by Simon Green
While U.S. and UK forces pummeled three suspected chemical weapons sites across Syria, the French military reportedly had some issues pulling its weight.
The three naval cruise missiles fired from the French frigate Languedoc were initially intended to come from a different French frigate whose first salvo simply “did not fire,” French Joint Chief of Staff spokesman Col. Patrick Steiger told Defense News.
Steiger stated the cause of the misfire was currently unknown; Navy Recognition notes that the launch constituted the first time that the French military had ever actually fired its new MdCN (or “Missile de Croisiere Naval”) naval cruise missiles.
The French military currently has three advanced European multi-purpose frigates (FREMM) in its fleet, according to Le Mamouth: the Aquitaine, the Provence, and the Languedoc. It’s unclear whether it was the Aquitaine or Provence that experienced the misfire.
Not that it mattered: France’s remaining contribution of Scalp EG missiles were all deployed from military aircraft. “All the targets were hit,” Steiger told Defense News. “The military effect was obtained.”
Operational screw-ups happen, especially with new and relatively untested equipment. But with all this talk of the U.S. plunging into a global conflict in Syria, we can’t help but think of how the French will respond to the end of the world: by taking a nap and then (maybe) firing ze missiles.
It’s either that or some missile tech aboard a French FREMM hit the mistook the “Surrender” button for “Launch” …
(Excerpt) Read more at yahoo.com ...
Hmm.
Snarky article.
Muslim sailors?
Sacrebleu!
France is in bed with Iran.
Not having the French participate in any kind of war is like not having the accordion when you are out deer hunting.
We are constantly doing proxy work for these frogs.
They don’t like the new deal on trade, they can always form a relationship with Zimbabwe....
oh....wait....
Agree article is snarky. GB had issues too I believe. France is doing a lot in central sub Saharan Africa.
Cmdr. Henri Pomme-Frite of the French Legume was unavailable for comment.
Zut alors!
Yep, just like the sale of WW2 French military rifles add that read; “For Sale, French Military rifles, like new never fired, only dropped once”
Typical Yahoo Article.
The first salvo surrendered?
French aren’t very good at war. There 1st aircraft carrier was a joke too. Remember French are lovers not fighters. That is why Germany invaded them repeatedly.
Rarely used complex systems.
They used aircraft for a back-up, successful.
Surely they learned a bunch about actually firing that weapon...., a good thing.
I think France still has a major part to play in the ‘Divide Europe’ campaign being forced onto Europe.
Import enough 3rd world’ers and Europe ceases to exist.
Why are people who accurately make that observation vilified?
Who/which groups are pushing the ‘diversity is our strength’ in Europe?
The ‘interlopers’ had better beware though...
The French have a way of ‘solving’ problems.
Anyone who thinks it ‘cannot happen today’ is misguided.
The French have a way of ‘solving’ problems.
Anyone who thinks it ‘cannot happen today’ is misguided.
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Your right. If you agree that Clovis was the first King then France has been France since circa 486.
So, for 1532 years, France, in one form or another, and one way or another, has been chopping off heads and surviving.
I look for them to finally get it together and overcome the muzzies. And, it won’t be pretty.
The failure is even more important than that. The US is looking to buy and off-the-shelf frigate design and modify it for construction in the US. The French ships were among the leading contenders (actually, an Italian variation of the FREMM). Lockheed and Austal are offering upgunned and enlarged variants of their respective LCS designs. Bath is offering a version of the Spanish frigate, and Ingalls is likely going to offer a variant of its large Coast Guard Cutter.
Spot on post. Arm chair jockeys sure are late coming to the party. The French are survivors, been around for quit a time.
Ditto!
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