PARIS: A member of the French navy using an app to track his jogging performance broadcast the exact position of his country&#39;s flagship aircraft carrier, a newspaper has reported. France deployed the Charles de Gaulle and accompanying frigates to the Mediterranean in early March shortly after US-Israeli strikes on Iran sparked war in the Middle East. It has been in the eastern Mediterranean since March 9 as part of what Emmanuel Macron has called a &quot;purely defensive&quot; posture in support of France&#39;s allies in the conflict. Le Monde newspaper reported on Thursday that the runner jogged in circles on a ship in movement on March 13 in the middle of the sea northwest of Cyprus, according to his public profile on the Strava fitness tracking app, while satellite images showed the aircraft carrier was in the immediate vicinity at the time. The same person had also been running in Copenhagen, Denmark, in late February, across a bridge from Malmo, Sweden, where the Charles de Gaulle was anchored at the time, Strava data showed. The French armed forces told AFP appropriate measures would be taken if the report was true, as members of the navy were regularly reminded about the risk of security breaches using such apps. &quot;The reported case if confirmed does not comply with the current instructions,&quot; it said. Running app profiles have given away sensitive information before. In 2024, Le Monde reported that the bodyguards of Macron, the US president Joe Biden and Russian leader Vladimir Putin were inadvertently giving away information about their whereabouts while accompanying them on trips. In 2018, Strava maps showed the locations of US and allied military personnel in Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan. While some bases were well known to groups that might want to attack them, the maps also showed what appear to be routes taken by forces moving outside of bases information that could have been used in planning bombings or ambushes.

French aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle (File Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

Europe

A French navy sailor allegedly exposed the location of the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle in the Mediterranean by sharing his jogging route on the Strava app, raising security concerns, Le Monde reported.

Running app reveals location of France aircraft carrier in Mediterranean: report 

ABU DHABI: French President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday he had given the official go-ahead to replace his country&#39;s flagship, the nuclear-powered Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier.&nbsp;That vessel, the only nuclear-powered carrier outside the US Navy, entered service in 2001 following more than a decade of construction.&nbsp;&quot;In line with the last two military programming laws, and after a thorough and comprehensive review, I have decided to equip France with a new aircraft carrier,&quot; Macron said, speaking during a visit to French troops in the United Arab Emirates.&nbsp;The decision to give the final go-ahead was made this week, he added.&nbsp;&quot;In an age of predators, we must be strong in order to be feared,&quot; Macron said.&nbsp;France first launched studies into replacing the Charles de Gaulle in 2018, with preliminary work beginning two years later.&nbsp;The announcement of the official start of construction comes despite a budgetary deadlock gripping the European Union&#39;s second-largest economy.&nbsp;Criticism in France, including from military chief General Fabien Mandon, had focused on whether other more pressing areas should be prioritised amid fears of a European war with Russia.&nbsp;This official launch will make it possible to sign all of the contracts necessary for the project, Macron&#39;s office said.&nbsp;Also nuclear-powered, the new carrier will be far larger than the current flagship.&nbsp;It will displace nearly 80,000 tons and be around 310 metres long, compared with 42,000 tons and 261 metres for the Charles de Gaulle.&nbsp;With a crew of 2,000, it will be able to hold 30 fighter jets.&nbsp;While the future ship will still be dwarfed by the 11 vast supercarriers of the US Navy, which each displace more than 100,000 tons, only China and Britain&#39;s Royal Navy currently operate similarly sized carriers, all of which are conventionally powered.&nbsp;Focus on drug traffickingMacron was speaking during a visit to the UAE to celebrate Christmas with French troops and to discuss bilateral ties with the Gulf state, with Paris hoping for more cooperation in its fight against drug trafficking.&nbsp;Macron met Emirati President Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan on Sunday, with the French leader posting on X that they had discussed how to strengthen their strategic partnership, particularly for &quot;stability in the Middle East&quot;.&nbsp;The UAE is a major buyer of French military hardware and Paris is reportedly considering turning to Abu Dhabi to rescue its troubled future fighter jet programme with Germany on the brink of pulling out.&nbsp;The French president traditionally celebrates the end-of-year holidays with troops deployed abroad, of whom there are more than 900 in the UAE.&nbsp;Some of their work focuses on the war against drug trafficking, with France hoping for more Emirati cooperation.&nbsp;Major traffickers are believed to have found refuge in the UAE, in Dubai in particular, and some are thought to have built up substantial real estate portfolios there.&nbsp;The French delegation includes Justice Minister Gerald Darmanin, who last month called on the UAE to extradite some 15 suspected drug traffickers wanted by France.

France’s President Emmanuel Macron authorises a larger, nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to replace the Charles de Gaulle, signalling defence priorities amid budget pressures during a UAE visit focused on security ties and anti-drug cooperation.

Articles tagged with "Aircraft Carrier"

Running app reveals location of France aircraft carrier in Mediterranean: report

Macron, on UAE visit, announces new French aircraft carrier