France unveils plans for massive aircraft carrier

France has announced it will build a massive aircraft carrier to support its military ambitions around the globe.

The 78,000-metric-ton vessel will be 310 meters long, 85 meters wide, and much bigger than the aging 42,000-ton, 261-meter-long Charles de Gaulle that it will replace.

The new ship should be ready by 2038, when the Charles de Gaulle, which was launched in 2001, is expected to be decommissioned.

France's President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday the new ship will be a "display of our nation's power in the service of freedom on the seas and amid the turbulence of our times".

He told French military personnel stationed in Abu Dhabi, in the United Arab Emirates near the Strait of Hormuz, that the carrier will accommodate 30 fighter jets and 2,000 people.

"In an age of predators, we must be strong in order to be feared, and especially strong at sea," he said."This is why … I have decided to equip France with a new aircraft carrier. The decision to launch the construction of this very large-scale program was taken this week."

Macron said the new vessel will be nuclear-powered and able to launch French-built Dassault Rafale M fighter jets.

The anticipated cost of the new ship has not been revealed in detail but Sebastien Lecornu, who has previously served as France's defense minister and who is now the country's prime minister, said in 2023 that such a ship would likely cost around 10 billion euros ($11.8 billion).

The Reuters news agency said the project of New Generation Aircraft Carrier, or PANG, has already begun, with work on nuclear propulsion components having started last year. It said the ship will be officially ordered as part of France's 2025 budget.

Increasing spending

Macron has overseen a significant increase in military spending during his time in office, with an additional 6.5 billion euros having been recently committed for the next two years.

The country is currently planning to spend a total of 64 billion euros on defense in 2027, which would be double the 32 billion euros it spent in 2017, which was Macron's first year in power.

The new ship and the additional military spending are France's moves in the background of Europe's push for strong military during the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the United States' increasing reluctance to support the continent militarily.

France's Minister of the Armed Forces Catherine Vautrin said in a post on X that the new ship will ultimately become a "centerpiece" of the country's military.

France has around 200,000 active military personnel and more than 40,000 reservists, which is second in size after Poland among the European Union's 27 member nations.