CV Charles de Gaulle´s propellers

Propulsion systems, machinery, turbines, boilers, propellers, fuel consumption, etc.
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Karl Heidenreich
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CV Charles de Gaulle´s propellers

Post by Karl Heidenreich »

I was reading this weekend that in the year 2000 the new French CVN Charles De Gaulle suffered from the breaking of a screw of one of her propellers, which was replaced by a unit of former CV Clemenceau which limit her speed to 25 knots until an american company built a new propeller for her.
Why something like that happened? Cavitaton?

Best regards.
An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last.
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Hartmann10
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Post by Hartmann10 »

Hello Karl (hola¡¡) :D .
I am by no means an expert, but I think that the propeller shaft was broken because the final displacement was very superior to the initial and this produced a excesive stress in the shaft, (probably by cavitation I don´t know), and producing a crack which broke down all the shaft.
I hope something like Foeth can help you more correctly than I can.
Best regards :wink:
ostriker
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Re: CV Charles de Gaulle´s propellers

Post by ostriker »

Karl Heidenreich wrote:I was reading this weekend that in the year 2000 the new French CVN Charles De Gaulle suffered from the breaking of a screw of one of her propellers, which was replaced by a unit of former CV Clemenceau which limit her speed to 25 knots until an american company built a new propeller for her.
Why something like that happened? Cavitaton?
Hi Karl.

It is very simple. The two propeller build by a french company were build with a reduction of budget. I don't kow how to translate this, but this aircraft carrier is a symbol of the french army forfeiture for the last twenty years.

In fact, after a study, it seems that some air bubble were inside the two propeller, obviously they became more breakable. And this is what happened.

Due to this 'accident', a survey was done. But a fire destroyed the engineering and design department and the files of the company builders.
Nice coincidence...

This CVN had at this time a bad reputation in the navy. A ship so long to be build, so long to born, with so much of problem due to... lack of money.
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RF
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Post by RF »

I was rather bemused to see that the replacement was constructed by a US company given the French policy of being self-sufficient in defence matters.
''Give me a Ping and one Ping only'' - Sean Connery.
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Karl Heidenreich
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Post by Karl Heidenreich »

I believe the US company was able to deliver the propeller faster than the French company, it wasn´t a quality issue.
As far as I know the steam catapult on this CVN is american design and built also.
An appeaser is one who feeds a crocodile, hoping it will eat him last.
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ostriker
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Post by ostriker »

Karl Heidenreich wrote:As far as I know the steam catapult on this CVN is american design and built also.
True !
RF wrote:French policy of being self-sufficient in defence matters.
This policy will be forget quickly. Some Army commanders are asking to "buy on the market" instead of buying expensive material in France.

In my opinion it is a good choice. We have already some foreign equipment as The E2C, and we have not to complain. German are also building good submarine, the F18 is an cheaper equivalent of the Rafale...

The only things that would be "french only" is the nuclear material (SSN, SSBN, etc...)
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