After months of work, the Charles-de-Gaulle has returned to sea. Before leaving on a mission, presumably in the spring, the French aircraft carrier has been renovating its ranges in the Mediterranean since the beginning of January.
The Rafales have returned and the pontées, these catapulting and landing sessions, are continuing at the beginning of February.
A special period since young pilots come to try to qualify for landing on the Charles-de-Gaulle, which constitutes an important stage in their training, already well advanced.
“We go from 200 to 0 km/h in 70 m”
Because landing is a complex exercise.
Launched at more than 200 km/h in a potentially armed plane, the pilots must target a particularly short part of the runway... On a boat that is moving forward.
The goal: to hook, with the butt of the aircraft, one of the three “strands”, these cables which slow down the Rafale when it hits the ground.
And contrary to what one might believe, the pilot restarts the gas at the moment of contact with the runway, in case, precisely, he does not catch a bit, and has to take off immediately.
Also read: Why the French army is acquiring a new aircraft carrier to replace the Charles-de-Gaulle
“The pilot cannot tell, visually, if he has caught (one of the strands).
Even if he tells himself that he has flown perfectly, he does not think: full throttle!
", explains Corvette Captain Justin, the deck officer who helps and guides the pilots during this phase of the flight.
“And then it either stops, and it's a controlled crash, in a way: you go from 200 km/h to 0 in 70 m, so it's a good ride.
But if it doesn't catch (a bit), you have to immediately re-mobilize yourself to get out of the ground and start again.”
In this particular environment, the flight deck, which is the raison d'être of the Charles-de-Gaulle, is obviously the subject of all the attention of the staff: from dry firing to landings, including "picking » in the morning… Watch our video report aboard the Charles-de-Gaulle