France Libre-rance’s next nuclear-powered aircraft carrier

Emmanuel Macron announced that France’s next nuclear-powered aircraft carrier will be named France Libre (“Free France”). The name was unveiled during his visit to the Indret shipyard, where the vessel’s nuclear reactors will be built. The name France Libre refers to the resistance movement led by Charles de Gaulle during World War II.

• The aircraft carrier is expected to enter service by 2038 and will symbolize national independence and strengthened naval capability.
  

Key features:

• Capacity: ~30 Dassault Rafale fighter jets and around 2,000 personnel
  
• Estimated cost: €10 billion
  
• Displacement: ~80,000 tons
  
• Length: 310 metres
  

It will replace and be significantly larger than the current carrier Charles de Gaulle (42,000 tons, 261 m). However, it will still be smaller than the world’s largest warship, the USS Gerald R. Ford, which exceeds 100,000 tons and measures about 334 metres.