FS Tonnere (L0914)

History

Tonnerre (L9014) as the modern French Navy's amphibious assault ship and helicopter carrier. The Mistral-class ship consists of three powerful surface ships designed to support amphibious operationsthat is, to support Allied intrusions into enemy territory from the sea.

The course is led by Mistral and completed by sister ship Dixmude. The Tonnerre (translated as "Thunder") was completed in two separate parts before final assembly - the front was built by Cnatiers de Saint-Nazaire and the rear by Arsenal de Brest. The vessel was launched on July 26, 2005, underwent the necessary sea trials, and was officially commissioned in December 2006.

The home port of the Tonnerre is outside Toulon.

While the Tonnerre's wing is technically an aircraft carrier, it consists entirely of light, medium and heavy rotor systems (helicopters). The boat can carry up to 35 light and 16 larger and heavier machines. Two powered hangar lifts serve the flight deck, and the vessel can launch/recall up to six helicopters at a time.

In addition, to support amphibious operations, the Tonnerre is equipped to transport the entire battalion of French Leclerc main battle tanks and up to 70 military vehicles. Tonnerre supports 100 officers and 60 additional crew members, with a maximum capacity of 400 (900 in extreme cases). She is 200 meters long from bow to stern, with a beam (beam) length of 32 meters and a draft of 6.3 meters.

It is designed for deep sea navigation and coastal operations and can be deployed anywhere in the world.

Externally, the tonnage adopts the established girder design, including the island superstructure (front midship) offset to starboard. The three Mistral-class ships have the same configuration.

This provides an open channel for the aircraft to take off and recover along the port side from stern to bow. The bow is well-shaped to cross the ocean, while the stern is squared and designed to put the amphibious hovercraft into service. A high performance crane can be seen behind the island structure for supply and transport of heavy deck items. All major communications, tracking, search and fire control functions are concentrated on the island's superstructure, as are the bridges. The headquarters of the aviation department is located on a ledge at the rear end of the island's superstructure, with an unobstructed view of the flight deck.

Of note related to Tonnerre's design approach is the use of large-scale surfaces on the sides of the aircraft - intended as a stealth measure compatible with modern warships in the rest of the world.

The Tonnerre relies on a modern propulsion system consisting of 2 x Mermaid electric motors located in a protruding nacelle under the stern, connected to 4 x Wartsila diesel generators and 1 x Wartsila Vasaa auxiliary diesel generator. There is a thruster in the bow for precise positioning when docking.

The retractable stabilizers are located amidships below the waterline. Under ideal conditions, this gives the vessel a top speed of nearly 19 knots and a range of up to 20,000 kilometers at 15 knots cruising speed.

While the Tonnerre was required to transport and eventually unload its valuable cargo, it was not designed for front-line combat. Her armament is more reserved for warships and consists of a defensive arrangement. These include 2 x MBDA "Mistral" Simbad infrared guided missile launchers and up to 4 x 12.7mm Browning M2 heavy machine guns for close range defense. One Simbad unit is installed in the far right corner, while the second unit is installed in the rear left corner. Even without installation, the boat can support up to 2 x 30mm Breda Mauser autocannons.

This limited arsenal requires the Tonnerre to be deployed with supporting ships/aircraft for added protection.

After the civil war in Cote d'Ivoire, Tonelle was called upon to take the first action in support of the UN's involvement in Cote d'Ivoire. It was part of Operation Unicorn from April 10, 2007 to July 24, 2007, during which the ship deployed light and medium helicopters into action.

In 2008, Tonnerre pledged humanitarian aid to the Gulf of Guinea to curb illegal drug smuggling. During the Libyan civil war in 2011, Tonnerre launched her helicopter in support of several major operations focused on protecting Libyan civilians and overthrowing dictator Muammar Gaddafi.

Currently (2013) Tonnerre is still in service with the French fleet.

Specification

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