It will have taken 2000 workers, 4 million hours of work, 200,000 chores, 1.3 billion euros and thousands of trials at sea to make the Charles de Gaulle, France's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier built in the 1980s, fit for the future, including a transition to “100% Rafale” operations. In a massive overhaul lasting 18 months, the technical, industrial, military, technological and human challenges faced were colossal. We meet with military experts, engineers, pilots and defense sector officials who reveal to us just how this vessel, a symbol of French might all over the world, was made fit for the future, giving it a second life…

It will have taken 2000 workers, 4 million hours of work, 200,000 chores, 1.3 billion euros and thousands of trials at sea to make the Charles de Gaulle, France's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier built in the 1980s, fit for the future, including a transition to “100% Rafale” operations. In a massive overhaul lasting 18 months, the technical, industrial, military, technological and human challenges faced were colossal. We meet with military experts, engineers, pilots and defense sector officials who reveal to us just how this vessel, a symbol of French might all over the world, was made fit for the future, giving it a second life for decades to come.