page_title: French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle
section_title: Fifth overseas deployment: Task Force 473 and Operation Agapanthus 2010
hierarchical_section_title: French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle / Operational service / Fifth overseas deployment: Task Force 473 and Operation Agapanthus 2010
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Le Rafale n°9 sur le pont d'envol du porte-avions Charles de Gaulle. English: Rafale number 9 on the flight deck of the Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier.
context_page_description: Charles de Gaulle is the flagship of the French Navy. The ship is the tenth French aircraft carrier, the first French nuclear-powered surface vessel, and the only nuclear-powered carrier completed outside of the United States Navy. She is named after French statesman and general Charles de Gaulle.
  The ship carries a complement of Dassault Rafale M and E‑2C Hawkeye aircraft, EC725 Caracal and AS532 Cougar helicopters for combat search and rescue, as well as modern electronics and Aster missiles. She is a CATOBAR-type carrier that uses two 75 m C13‑3 steam catapults of a shorter version of the catapult system installed on the U.S. Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, one catapult at the bow and one across the front of the landing area. As of May 2019, Charles de Gaulle is the only non-American carrier-vessel that has a catapult launch system, which has allowed for operation of F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and C-2 Greyhounds of the US Navy.
context_section_description: A French naval task group, designated Task Force 473, led by Charles de Gaulle departed Toulon on 30 October 2010 for a four-month deployment, code-named Operation Agapanthus 2010, to the Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Indian Ocean. and Persian Gulf.  The task group also included the frigates Forbin and Tourville; the nuclear attack submarine Améthyste; the replenishment oiler Meuse, 3,000 sailors, and an Embarked Aviation Group (EAG) consisting of 12 Super-Étendard attack aircraft, 10 Rafale multi-role fighters, and two E-2C Hawkeye 2000 AEW aircraft.  The task group commander, Rear Admiral Jean-Louis Kerignard, defined force's mission as follows:
  The force would help allied navies fight piracy off the coast of Somalia and send jets to support NATO in the skies above Afghanistan."
  Once on station, Task Force 473 joined two U.S. Navy carrier strike groups operating in the Persian Gulf (pictured), the Carrier Strike Group Nine led by USS Abraham Lincoln and Carrier Strike Group Ten led by USS Harry S. Truman. On 28 November 2010, according to an Associated Press dispatch, the French Ministry of Defense announced that a French Rafale fighter jet crashed near Charles de Gaulle, which was operating 60 miles (100 kilometres) off the coast of Pakistan in the Arabian Sea in support of coalition forces in Afghanistan. The pilot parachuted to safety and was picked up by helicopter, and the cause of the crash was under investigation. In December 2010, during its deployment to the Persian Gulf, the British Type 22 frigate Cumberland and the United States destroyer USS Halsey rotated from maritime security patrol to escort Charles de Gaulle in support of coalition military operations in Afghanistan. This represented an example of interoperability pursuant to the recently ratified Anglo-French defence cooperation treaty.
  Between 7–14 January 2011, Task Force 473 participated in bilateral naval exercises, code named Varuna 10, with the Indian Navy. Indian naval units participating in Varuna 10 included the aircraft carrier Viraat, the frigates Godavari and Ganga; and the diesel-electric submarine Shalki. Varuna 10 was a two-phase naval exercise, with the harbor phase taking place between 7–11 January and the sea phase between 11–14 January in the Arabian Sea. Task Force 473 paid a port visit to Goa between 7–14 January 2011. The carrier Charles de Gaulle and the frigate Forbin also paid a goodwill visit to Khor Fakkan, United Arab Emirates, on 30 January 2011, docking at its container terminal facilities.
  Operation Agapanthus 2010 concluded on 21 February 2011. Task Force 473 completed more than 1,000 flying hours flown from Charles de Gaulle in support of NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) deployed in Afghanistan. Task Force 473 also participated in bilateral exercises with armed forces of India, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates to test the interoperability of French military forces and share expertise with the regional partners.
caption: Rafale number 9 on the flight deck of Charles de Gaulle
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