Since the project was launched in 2020, the French Navy's new-generation nuclear aircraft carrier, successor to the PAN (Porte-Avions Nucléaire) Charles de Gaulle, from 2038, has been the subject of fierce debate.

For its detractors, the aircraft carrier would be, today, far too vulnerable to modern anti-ship weapons, such as anti-ship ballistic missiles or hypersonic missiles, while modern fighters, supported by a sufficient number of tanker aircraft, are capable of carrying out very long-range raids, as demonstrated by Operation Hamilton against Syrian chemical installations in 2018.

Its defenders, on the contrary, emphasize that the threat today is no greater than it was in the 80s, as defensive systems have evolved at the same pace as the threats. Furthermore, the reach provided by tanker aircraft cannot effectively replace the mobility of the sovereign naval air base, which the aircraft carrier represents.

In any case, in this case, the French government has chosen to retain the extraordinary operational tool that a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, its escort and its embarked air group represent for the decades to come, and to prepare the development of the successor to the Charles de Gaulle, which should be withdrawn from service in 2038.

If second new generation nuclear aircraft carrier or PANG will be the successor of the Charles de Gaulle, it will be, on the other hand, a completely new ship, much more modern, and above all, considerably more imposing. Thus, while the French aircraft carrier, today, measures 261 m long, for a displacement of 42500 tons when loaded, its successor will be almost 50 metres longer, or 310 metres, and almost twice as heavy, with a displacement which would now be around 80.000 tons.

In doing so, the PANG would not only be the most imposing military ship ever built in Europe, but it would also be in the same category as the new Chinese aircraft carriers of the Fujian class (316 m for 80 tons), and the American nuclear aircraft carriers of the Nimitz class (000 meters for 333 tons).

These dimensions are the consequence of the replacement of the Rafale M, which today arms the Charles de Gaulle, by the NGF of the FCAS program, an aircraft which will be both more imposing and heavier than the Rafale, although its exact dimensions are not known to date.

In addition, the NGFs will operate alongside combat drones, some airborne, others autonomous, the latter therefore having to be transported and operated from the catapults of the new aircraft carrier. Therefore, to implement a flotilla of 25 to 30 NGFs, it is necessary to provide sufficient space in the hangars to transport and operate at least as many Loyal Wingmen type combat drones.

It cannot be ruled out, moreover, that other aircraft, piloted or drones, will take their place on the deck of the new aircraft carrier. Thus, the resurgence of the submarine threat, which was very much reduced at the end of the Cold War, could once again bring out the need for an on-board air security and anti-submarine warfare aircraft, as the Bréguet Alizé did on board the Clemenceau and Foch aircraft carriers during the Cold War.

In fact, while the Charles de Gaulle had dimensions perfectly adapted to the Rafale M and the reality of threats and engagement scenarios from 2000 to today, the PANG will have to be much more imposing, to carry more combat aircraft, themselves more imposing, and a significant number of specialized drones.

Obviously, these dimensions, like the three electromagnetic catapults, the nuclear propulsion designed around two K22 reactors of 220 MW each, and all the on-board systems, have significantly increased the expected bill.

(With Inputs From International Agencies)