EMALS for future French Navy aircraft carrier
On 21 December 2021, the US State Department made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale (FMS) to the Government of France of Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS), Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG), and related equipment for an estimated cost of USD 1,3 billion.
France has requested for the new systems (one EMALS, two launcher configurations, one AAG and three engine configurations) to be used at its Porte avions de nouvelle generation (PANG, new generation aircraft carrier).
French President Emmanuel Macron officially approved the construction of a new nuclear-powered aircraft carrier as part of the PANG programme on 8 December 2020. The future flagship of the Marine Nationale (French Navy) is intended to replace the existing nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle (R91) around 2038.
The PANG will be much larger compared to the Charles de Gaulle. It will have a length of 300 meters, a width of 80 meters with a displacement of 75,000 tons. First steel cut is set for 2025, while sea trials are set to begin in 2036 and commissioning with the French Navy in 2038, which matches with the expected decommissioning of the Charles de Gaulle.
The future air wing will consist of 32 Next Generation Fighter aircraft with two to three E-2D Advanced Hawkeyes and a yet to be determined number of Unmanned Combat Aerial Systems (UCAS).
In 2022, Dassault Rafale M fighters will test EMALS at Naval Air Warfare Center Aircraft Division (NAWC-AD) Lakehurst (NJ), also known as NAS Lakehurst. Unofficially reports suggest that the French Navy could request the US Navy the possibility to use an EMALS-equipped aircraft carrier to train and qualify French pilots during the next refueling and overhaul period of the Charles de Gaulle, set for 2028. The US Navy should have three operational Ford-class carriers by then.
Image by Naval Group Image