France will build a new aircraft carrier

France will build a new aircraft carrier with a capacity for 30 fighter jets and 2,000 sailors, French President Emmanuel Macron announced in what he described as “the display of our nation’s power in the service of freedom on the seas and amid the turbulence of our times.”

“In an age of predators, we must be strong in order to be feared, and especially strong at sea. This is why, in line with the last two military programming laws and after a thorough review, 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 told French troops stationed in Abu Dhabi.

The new vessel is expected to be ready in 2038, replacing the aging Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier, which entered service in 2001. It will have a displacement of about 78,000 tons and a length of 310 meters (1,017 feet), compared to 42,000 tons and 261 meters (856 feet) for the Charles de Gaulle.

The new carrier would still be smaller than the USS Gerald R. Ford, the world’s largest warship, which displaces more than 100,000 tons and measures 1,100 feet (334 meters).

Like its predecessor, France’s new aircraft carrier will be nuclear-powered and equipped with French Rafale M fighter jets.

Macron said the project will benefit hundreds of suppliers, most of them small- and medium-sized businesses.

“I will personally guarantee this commitment in support of our companies, and I will visit the shipyard next February to meet them,” he said.

The new carrier will be able to conduct heavily armed, long-range deployments at short notice, repeatedly and for extended periods, the French defense ministry said on its website.

In 2023, Sébastien Lecornu, then-defense minister and now French prime minister, estimated the cost of a new aircraft carrier at about 10 billion euros ($11.7 billion).

Macron has announced 6.5 billion euros ($7.6 billion) in extra military spending in the next two years.

He said France will aim to spend 64 billion euros on defense in 2027, the last year of his second term, double the 32 billion euros spent when he became president in 2017.

France’s military currently comprises around 200,000 active personnel and over 40,000 reservists, making it the second-largest in the European Union, just behind Poland.

France wants to increase the number of reservists to 80,000 by 2030.