French Navy: submarines and modern warships

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:43

French Armed Forces include the Army, Navy (Navy), Air Force (Air Force) and National Gendarmerie. The French Navy consists of more than one hundred and eighty surface ships. This is the only European country that has a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier in its fleet. Its submarine fleet consists of ten nuclear submarines, four of which are armed with ballistic nuclear missiles.

The place of the Navy in the overall structure of the French Armed Forces

The total strength of the French Armed Forces in 2014 was:

in the army - 115 thousand people;
in aviation - 45.5 thousand people;
in the fleet - 44 thousand people (currently);
medical staff and quartermasters – 17.8 thousand people;
in the gendarmerie - 98.2 thousand people.

The French Navy is recruited on a contract basis. Officers for them are trained at the Naval Academy, admission to which is made on a competitive basis after two years of service. The fleet's total annual budget exceeds 6 billion euros. The French Navy is ranked 5th in the world among fleets by tonnage.

Fleet motto:"Honor, Fatherland, Valor, Discipline" is engraved in white letters on blue plates mounted on the superstructures of all ships.

Organizational structure

Chief of the Main Naval Staff Vice Admiral of the Squadron Arnaud de Tarle. The French Navy consists of four main operational components:

operational naval forces (forces of influence - FAN) - surface fleet;
submarine fleet (FSM);
Naval Aviation (ALAVIA);
Marines and Special Forces (FORFUSCO).

In addition, the French National Gendarmerie supports the maritime forces with its patrol boats, which fall under the operational command of the French Navy.

Surface fleet (FAN)

This component of the Navy has 12,000 people and about 100 ships, which is the backbone of the French fleet. Warships are divided into seven categories (groups):

aircraft carrier group based on the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle;
a group of landing craft (amphibians) (currently Mistral-class ships);
frigates that act either as protection for strategic groups, or alone in surveillance, reconnaissance, rescue or containment missions;
minesweepers;
warships that are deployed abroad and act as presence and deterrence forces;
ship support;
hydrographic and oceanographic vessels.

Carrier group of surface shipsfleet

This group is the backbone of the French Navy and one of the components of the nuclear deterrence force, since Super Etendard and Rafale aircraft can carry nuclear weapons.

At a minimum, the tactical group of ships of the French Navy includes an aircraft carrier (currently Charles de Gaulle), an air defense frigate and auxiliary vessels. As a rule, this group also includes several anti-submarine and air defense frigates, a nuclear-powered torpedo submarine (of the Ryubi type or the advanced Barracuda type) designed to torpedo surface ships and submarines, and possibly additional support ships.

Air connection can include up to 40 units: Rafale, Super Etendard and E-2 Hawkeye aircraft, as well as NHI NH-90, AS365 Dauphine and AS565 Panther helicopters. This composition varies depending on the mission and tactical situation, and may include air assets from both the army and the air force.

Group of landing ships of the surface fleet

The French Navy has three large Mistral-class landing ships, commonly referred to as "helicopter carriers", which carry various landing equipment. They carry helicopters, troops, and ground vehicles. This link also includes five smaller ships that are in Fort-de-France, Toulon, Papeete, Nouméa, and Reunion.

Amphibious assault force also includes one or more TCD-type amphibious transport ships carrying amphibious assault vehicles, vehicles andhelicopters, and one or more light transport ships of the BATRAL type, which are capable of delivering motorized rifle units directly to the coast. They can carry Puma and Cougar-type maritime transport helicopters or Gazelle and Tiger attack helicopters, minesweepers, as well as amphibious or army units.

French frigate-class ships

They provide freedom of air and sea space and allow other components of the Navy to operate. Frigates are subdivided according to the threat they are designed to repel, and, as a rule, escort other forces (aircraft carriers or landing groups of ships, submarines or civilian ships).

Four air defense frigates: two of them of the Horizon type and two of the Kassar type, are designed to protect the aircraft carrier group from air threats. They also carry helicopters that can be used to fight submarines.
Nine anti-submarine torpedo frigates (two Tourville + seven Georges Legy) carry towed sonars and helicopters, and also have anti-ship and anti-air weapons.
Eight multi-purpose frigates of the Aquitania type are intended in the future to replace existing anti-submarine frigates.
Five Lafayette-class frigates are used primarily to patrol national and international waters. They carry AS565 Panther or Lynx helicopters.

UnderwaterFleet (FSM)

Submarine forces consist (at the beginning of 2010) of the following formations:

Squadrons of nuclear submarines (NPS) for torpedo attacks of the "Ryubi" type, which do not have missile silos (designated as PLAT according to the domestic classification and SSN according to the "NATO"). These are the smallest nuclear submarines in the world. They are based in the military port of Toulon on the Côte d'Azur. The number of submarines in a squadron is six
Squadrons of nuclear submarines with ballistic missiles (designated SSBN according to the domestic classification and SSBN according to the "NATO"). It includes four Triumfan-class nuclear submarines equipped with 16 launchers of the M45 or M51 type. The squadron is based at the Île Longes operational base near Brest, where the first French Redoutable-class SSBNs were previously located (from 1972 to 2007).

The firing range of M45 missiles is 6000 km, M51 - 9000 km. Both missiles are capable of carrying six nuclear warheads of 100 kilotons of TNT each.

French Naval Aviation (ALAVIA)

This Navy component contains four components:

The air group of the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle, consisting of 16 fourth-generation Dassault Rafale multipurpose fighters, 8 Dassault Super-Etendard supersonic carrier-based attack aircraft, and Grumman E-2 Hawkeye double-deck early warning aircraft.
16 (for 2015) long-range Navy aircraft of the Atlantic-2 type. They perform patrol functions. combating submarines, laying and detecting mines, long-range reconnaissance.
Helicopters of the Dauphine, Panther, Lynx, Alouette III types onsides of ships.
Service units.

The main unit of French naval aviation is the flotilla (39 in total), usually consisting of 12 aircraft.

Marines and Special Forces (FORFUSCO)

They are grouped at the base in Lorient (Brittany region) and number 1700 people. These forces are involved in ground operations with intervention from the sea, operations of special forces, protection of sensitive areas. It includes two components:

Marine commandos, which include six specialized units: "Jaubert" (attack and release of hostages), "Trepel" (attack and release of hostages), "Penfentegno" (intelligence and reconnaissance), "Montfort" (support and destruction offensive), "Hubert" (submarine operations) and "Kieffer" (command and fight against new threats). They are often used by the French Special Operations Command (COS).
Naval shooters, specializing in the protection and protection of ships and key areas of the French Navy on land. Their number is approximately 1900 people.