Charles de Gaulle bounds for Afghanistan by Barbora Misakova

The name Charles de Gaulle belonged to outstanding French soldier, general, statesman. His name was given also to another pride of France – aircraft carrier R91. Charles de Gaulle is the only serving French aircraft carrier. It is the tenth French aircraft carrier, the first French nuclear-powered surface vessel and the first and only nuclear-powered carrier built outside of the United States Navy. Why is this carrier so special and why are French so proud of it? Let’s see what this “ship” can actually do. It carries a complement of Dassault Rafale M and E-2C Hawkeye aircraft. Also modern electronics and missiles are on its board. After the Admiral K! uznetsov it is the second largest European carrier that uses a shorter version of the catapult system. This ship can carry 800 commandos, 500 tones of ammunitions and food reserve for 45 days. What is more, it has capacity to carry up to 35 airplanes and five helicopters. On 21 November 2001, France decided to send Charles de Gaulle to the Indian Ocean in support of Operation Enduring Freedom against Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. The staff officer of Paris’s armies, Admiral Christophe Prazuck, informed Wednesday the France’s aircraft carrier will likely be deployed in the coming months to Afghanistan. “We are in the middle of working on a program that would involve aerial support for the military operations in Afghanistan.” he said. The Charles de Gaulle has already carried out four major military operations in the Afghanistan war and as informed French President Nicolas Sarkozy, Charles would be deployed to the Gulf region and the Indian Ocean by ! the end of this year.

related story (sgx17759): http://www.english.rfi.fr/asia-pacific/20100701-frances-flag...

by Barbora Misakova for Cantell TV (http://cantell.tv)

Cantell TV is the fastest growing provider of digital broadcasting coupled with telecommunications, allowing people to easily control, view, upload and share digital content through proprietary interface coupled with free phone calls. Cantell TV is committed to delivering infinite choices to your world of entertainment at the tip of your fingers.