French aircraft carrier group moves into Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, preparing to aid freedom of navigation in Hormuz

By Reuters 6 May 2026, 4:14 pm

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The French aircraft carrier Charles-de-Gaulle is seen as it passes through the Strait of Gibraltar off the coast of southern Spain in Tarifa, on March 6, 2026.(Photo by JORGE GUERRERO / AFP)

France’s Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier group is moving into the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden as part of efforts by France and Britain to prepare for a future mission to help freedom of navigation on the Strait of Hormuz, France’s military says.

The French Armed Forces ministry says in a statement that the aircraft carrier group has crossed the Suez Canal, en route to the south of the Red Sea.

This French aircraft carrier strike group was deployed to the eastern Mediterranean shortly after the US and Israel launched airstrikes on Iran, and it can stay at sea between four and five months.