Charles de Gaulle

Also known as R91, CDG, Porte-avions Charles de Gaulle, R 91, Aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle

1994 French nuclear aircraft carrier

Key facts

Name: Charles de Gaulle class
Builders: DCN , Arsenal de Brest
Operators: French Navy
Preceded by: Clemenceau class
Succeeded by: PA2 (cancelled) PANG (planned)
Cost: € 3 billion (2001) (equivalent to € 4.14 billion in 2022)
Built: 1989–2000
In commission: 2001–present
Namesake: Charles de Gaulle
Ordered: 3 February 1986
Builder: Naval Group
Laid down: 14 April 1989 (stacking of elements in prefabrication from 24 November 1987)

Article

Charles de Gaulle (R91; French: [ʃaʁl(ə) də ɡol] ) is the flagship of the French Navy. Commissioned in 2001, 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. It is named after French president and general Charles de Gaulle.

The ship carries a complement of Dassault Rafale M and E-2C Hawkeye aircraft, AS365F Dauphin Pedro, 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 (246 ft) C13‑3 steam catapults of a shorter version of the catapult system installed on the US Nimitz-class aircraft carriers, one at the bow and one at the waist. As of March 2026, Charles de Gaulle and the Chinese aircraft carrier Fujian were the only non-American aircraft carriers equipped with catapult launch systems. The catapults on Charles de Gaulle allow it to operate F/A-18E/F Super Hornets and C-2 Greyhounds of the United States Navy.