FILE PHOTO: French Navy aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is moored at the port of Limassol, Cyprus, February 21, 2020. REUTERS/Stefanos Kouratzis/File Photo
By Tangi Salaün PARIS, April 8 (Reuters) – France’s flagship aircraft carrier the Charles de Gaulle is returning to its home port early after about 40 crew members showed signs of COVID-19 symptoms, the armed forces ministry said on Wednesday.
The personnel were under strict medical observation on board the nuclear-powered carrier, which had most recently been taking part in exercises with northern European navies in the Baltic Sea.
“The first cases showed symptoms recently,” the ministry said in a statement. “There are no signs of aggravated cases among the patients.”
The aircraft carrier would dock in Toulon, southern France, in the next few days, a spokesman for the head of the armed forces told Reuters. It had been due back on April 23.
The Charles de Gaulle set sail for the eastern Mediterranean on Jan. 21 to support French military operations against Islamist militants in Iraq and Syria, before deploying to the Atlantic and then the Baltic.
It has 1,760 personnel on board.
A team equipped to carry out tests for coronavirus infection was on Wednesday due to land on the vessel, which is equipped with its own intensive care facilities.
Last week, the U.S. Navy relieved the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt’s captain of his command, after the leak of a scathing letter he sent to superiors that sought stronger measures for curbing a coronavirus outbreak aboard his vessel. (Reporting by Sudip Kar-Gupta and Tangi Salaun; Writing by Richard Lough; Editing by Giles Elgood)
The Iranian military loaded naval mines onto vessels in the Persian Gulf last month, a move that intensified concerns in Washington that Tehran was gearing up to blockade the Strait of Hormuz following Israel's strikes on sites across Iran, according to two U.S. officials.
America’s largest military shipbuilder HII and enterprise AI software company C3 AI have announced an expanded strategic partnership aimed at accelerating shipbuilding throughput through artificial intelligence implementation at HII’s Newport...
Michigan Representative Bill Huizenga is leading efforts to restore funding for a new Great Lakes icebreaker that was included in the House-passed version of the One Big Beautiful Bill but...
June 30, 2025
Total Views: 2571
Get The Industry’s Go-To News
Subscribe to gCaptain Daily and stay informed with the latest global maritime and offshore news
— just like 109,158 professionals
Secure Your Spot
on the gCaptain Crew
Stay informed with the latest maritime and offshore news, delivered daily straight to your inbox
— trusted by our 109,158 members
Your Gateway to the Maritime World!
Essential news coupled with the finest maritime content sourced from across the globe.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.