| Submit your comments on this article |
| Europe |
| Future French aircraft carrier to be "Classic" |
| 2004-02-13 |
| The French government has decided to use classic rather than nuclear propulsion for a future aircraft carrier that is slated to enter service in 2014, French President Jacques Chirac said on Friday. "On the recommendation of the Prime Minister, the President has chosen the classic propulsion option for its second aircraft carrier," a statement from the Elysee Palace said. Classic propulsion - Row, row, row your boat? Chirac said that the choice opened the way for better cooperation with Britain, which last year ordered two non-nuclear aircraft carriers to be designed by French defence electronics company Thales and built by Britain’s BAE Systems Plc. Designed by a electronics company? France currently operates one Enough said |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #19 Disinformation. The entire French military operates on hot air alone. |
| Posted by: Mr. Davis 2004-2-13 11:49:42 PM |
| #18 Ramming speed!!! |
| Posted by: tu3031 2004-2-13 10:22:27 PM |
| #17 A very responsible choice by the Frenchies. Fuel oil will have a much shorter half-life than nuclear fuel rods when this bustrucket sinks and dumps everything into the ocean. |
| Posted by: The Other John Hawkins 2004-2-13 8:11:27 PM |
| #16 I wonder if they every considered dilithium crystals as a power source, and give 'er all she's got... |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2004-2-13 7:31:14 PM |
| #15 Good old Phwance! The only country ever to loose a war with Greenpeace! |
| Posted by: Secret Master 2004-2-13 5:43:11 PM |
| #14 Maybe they want it to be abe to make a courtesy port call in NZ so they can appologize for deep sixing the Rainbow Warrior |
| Posted by: Cheddarhead 2004-2-13 5:32:24 PM |
| #13 OP: Properly designed and constructed sails can serve as dual-purpose catapults and catchers. I've actually see this work at the cinema (usually before the main feature)... |
| Posted by: snellenr 2004-2-13 4:56:15 PM |
| #12 We shall name her Yorktown! (a good one no?) |
| Posted by: Napoleon VII 2004-2-13 4:42:17 PM |
| #11 It'll be interesting to see how they launch aircraft around the masts, and land them without losing the sails... |
| Posted by: Old Patriot 2004-2-13 4:40:06 PM |
| #10 Dammit, Carl, you stole my thunder! |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2004-2-13 4:23:53 PM |
| #9 "classic" aircraft carrier: excellent, looking forward to seeing a trireme-class carrier... |
| Posted by: Carl in N.H 2004-2-13 4:07:28 PM |
| #8 Ack! How the hell did I do that? |
| Posted by: Charles 2004-2-13 3:56:26 PM |
| #7 Who wants to bet it floats out of the shipyard and right into a passing tanker? Or just plain out sinks? |
| Posted by: Dameus@zahadum.com 2004-2-13 3:29:17 PM |
| #6 wtf does france need with an aircraft carrier, anyway? the only military action they'll be seeing in the near or mid term future is when there is a civil war/jihad in country. Other than that, as long as the thing goes in reverse, they're all set. |
| Posted by: PlanetDan 2004-2-13 3:20:57 PM |
| #5 Hey, guys, at least this will be one less nuke reactor the Izzoids will have at their disposal after the fall of the Fifth Republique... |
| Posted by: .com 2004-2-13 3:02:21 PM |
| #4 The French better make sure that they get along well with at least one middle eastern oil supplier to keep their flattop steaming. The French are heavily into domestic nuclear power, so it is not like they are hurting for nuclear fuel. They need some power to run the steam catapult AND steam into the wind. Try a couple of reactors instead of the underpowered unit on the |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2004-2-13 2:49:03 PM |
| #3 Power who needs power? It ain't going anywhere anyway. |
| Posted by: dataman1 2004-2-13 2:46:21 PM |
| #2 Government paper shredders are hard at work producing fuel for the new carrier. |
| Posted by: john 2004-2-13 2:40:24 PM |
| #1 They're going to burn copies of Voltaire to fuel their boilers? Or some other classics? Whether or not they put a ram on the bow will be a dead giveaway. |
| Posted by: Chuck Simmins 2004-2-13 2:38:10 PM |