French carrier aviation: catapults, arresting gear and future aircraft

The proposed French carrier fit includes EMALS and advanced arresting gear. Aircraft movements remain tentative: an initial suggestion of simultaneous launch and recovery is immediately qualified to launches followed by recoveries in rapid succession. Hawkeye aircraft are expected to remain part of the air wing. Rafale derivatives or a successor aircraft are considered, while the prospects for the aircraft programme involving Germany are judged doubtful. The future air wing therefore remains unsettled.