The French aircraft carrier “Charles De Gaulle” set sail today, Friday, February 17, at the K14 pier of Marathi, at the Souda Naval Base. The behemoth of the French fleet arrives in Crete to take part in an exercise carried out as part of the Greek-French agreement. His arrival confirms once again the important geostrategic role of Greece and Souda.

The news of his passing in K14 was accompanied by the expected reactions. Already in the previous days, the Chania Peace Committee, in a statement it issued, condemns both the docking of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier “George Bush” in Piraeus, as well as the docking of the “Charles De Gaulle” in Souda.

“The presence of these two aircraft carriers is a link in the further deepening of Greece’s involvement in the US-NATO-EU war plans. on the ground of the imperialist war in Ukraine, which has been raging for a year and has gone on a dangerous trajectory of escalation. The special role played against the people by the US-NATO bases and infrastructures in our country, with prominent ones in Alexandroupolis and Souda, which actively participate in dozens of imperialist military operations, is revealed in the announcement.

The aircraft carrier “Charles de Gaulle” is the flagship of the French navy and the largest warship in Europe. It is France’s first nuclear powered warship, which enables it to travel for at least 10-15 years without refueling, the first nuclear powered warship ever built in Europe and also the first built outside the US. It is the tenth aircraft carrier in French history, but the first nuclear powered surface aircraft carrier outside the United States. It has been in the possession of the French Navy since 2000.

The French aircraft carrier is a platform for complex offensive or reconnaissance operations, as in addition to the Rafale M, electronic warfare and Hawkeye early warning aircraft operate, as well as rescue helicopters. It is a catobar-type aircraft carrier and uses a system of steam-propelled or electric catapults, which help the aircraft reach the necessary recovery speed. A system of catching the aircraft is used for the mooring, which carry hooks, and which are held during the mooring by wire ropes spread on the flight deck.

In fact, the “Charles de Gaulle” is the only non-American aircraft carrier in the world responsible for transporting American aircraft, such as the F/ A-18E Super Hornet or the C-2 Greyhound. About a year ago he had sailed again to Piraeus. It had arrived at Falirikos bay off the Zea marina on March 24, 2022 and stayed for one day, while on the 26th of the same month it had sailed again to Souda.