The French Navy destroyer Chevalier Paul and aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle have conducted firing exercise using Aster surface-to-air missiles.
The drill took place on 4 October, with Horizon-class air defense destroyer Chevalier Paul successfully intercepting an aerial target with Aster 30 surface-to-air missile.
Meanwhile, French flagship and aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle fired an Aster 15 surface-to-air missile to destroy a target.
The tests demonstrated the capabilities of an aircraft carrier and destroyer acting as a part of a carrier strike group.
The trials were conducted “in an environment artificially reproducing a naval aviation situation close to that encountered in theaters of operation.”
“The neutralization of the high-speed air threat was thus achieved in a denied environment, the fire control radar of the Chevalier Paul having been deliberately jammed,” the French Navy stated.
The crews trained in an environment likely to be encountered in the future.
Charles de Gaulle, commissioned in 2001, is the tenth French aircraft carrier, the first French nuclear-powered surface vessel, and the only nuclear-powered carrier completed outside of the US Navy. The ship is named after French statesman and general Charles de Gaulle.
In 2021, the Directorate General of Armaments (DGA) launched a preliminary design phase of the new next-gen aircraft carrier. Naval Group, Chantiers de l’Atlantique, TechnicAtome and their subcontractors have been awarded the contract to carry out the preliminary design phase.
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