Clemenceau-class Carrier

## Clemenceau-class

FS Clemenceau

The ***Clemenceau*-class aircraft carriers** are a pair of aircraft carriers, *Clemenceau* and *Foch*, which served in the French Navy from 1961 until 2000. From 2000 to 2017, one ship served with the Brazilian Navy as the *São Paulo*.

The *Clemenceau* class was France's first successful aircraft carrier design after World War II. It was the backbone of the French fleet for the duration of its forty years of service.

### Background

By the early 1950s, the French Navy had in service a number of aircraft carriers, the most modern of which was *Arromanches*. However, all of them were small and increasingly incapable of operating modern aircraft, which were steadily increasing in size. To ensure French independence in defence matters, a new class of two modern fleet carriers was envisaged. Displacing just under 35,000 tons each, the new ships would be slightly smaller than the Royal Navy's newly commissioned 43,000 ton *Audacious*-class ships, but they would be capable ships for their size built from scratch to take advantage of the latest ideas in aircraft carrier design, including angled flight deck, steam catapults and mirror landing aid, and would operate a brand new generation of French-designed, carrier-based aircraft.

The draft statute prepared by the Naval General Staff in 1949 asked for four aircraft carriers of 20,000 tons to be available in two phases. At its meeting of 22 August 1949, the Supreme Council of the Navy was even more ambitious where they asked for a six aircraft carrier fleet. On 15 July 1952, the French Navy still wanted between two and five for the French Union (not available to the NATO). According to RCM 12, the final document of the Lisbon Conference of 1952, France should make available to NATO an aircraft carrier on D-day, two on day 30, three on day 180. However, by 1953, the Navy had to be satisfied with two aircraft carriers. The PA 54 *Clemenceau*, budgeted in 1953, was delayed until November 1955, the PA 55 *Foch*, budgeted for 1955, was delayed until February 1957. Between 1980 and 1981, she underwent a study to certify the platform before catapulting aircraft carrying missiles, bombs, AM-39 Exocet and tactical nuclear bombs. Both *Clemenceau* and *Foch* underwent a modernization and refit, replacing 4 of their 8 100mm guns with 2 Crotale air-defense systems. In 1997, *Foch* also received 2 Sadral launchers (for 6 Mistral missiles each); those launchers were purchased by France in 1994.

They would also have longer careers (until 1998 and 2000) when compared with the *Audacious*-class carriers, which were withdrawn in 1972 and 1978.

The *Clemenceau*-class aircraft carriers are of conventional CATOBAR design. The flight deck is 165.5 m (543 ft) long by 29.5 m (97 ft) wide; the landing area is angled at 8 degrees off of the ship's axis. The forward aircraft elevator is to starboard, and the rear elevator is positioned on the deck edge to save hangar space. The forward of two 170 ft (52 m) catapults is to port on the bow, the aft catapult is on the angled landing deck. The hangar deck dimensions are 152 m (499 ft) by 22–24 m (72–79 ft) with 7 m (23 ft) overhead.

### Ships in Class

* FS Clemenceau
* FS Foch