Timeline

Key figures

Origin and history

The Redoutable is France's first nuclear launcher submarine (SNLE), a major step forward in the national deterrence strategy. Its construction, decided in 1963 as project Q-252, began in 1964 in Cherbourg under the direction of engineer André Gempp. With a length of 128 metres and a nuclear reactor, he boarded 16 M1 ballistic missiles (then M20) and a crew of 135 sailors, divided into two teams ("Blues" and "Reds") to ensure a permanent operation.

Launched on 29 March 1967 in the presence of General de Gaulle, Le Redoutable entered active service on 1 December 1971 in the Strategic Ocean Force (FOST). He conducted his first patrol in January 1972, with missions lasting up to 75 days at sea. In 20 years of service, he conducted 51 patrols, totaling 11 years in diving. Its disarmament was pronounced in December 1991, followed by a partial dismantling in Cherbourg, where its reactor slice was isolated for secure storage.

Turned into a museum ship, Le Redoutable was transferred in 2000 to the Cité de la Mer in Cherbourg-Octeville, after a complex technical operation to fail in a specially designed tarsus. Opened to the public in April 2002, it became the heart of an exhibition dedicated to nuclear propulsion, the Strategic Ocean Force and underwater exploration. Its history illustrates both French industrial excellence and the geopolitical stakes of the Cold War.

The submarine is distinguished by its technical characteristics: 80 HLES steel hull allowing dives at 300 meters, SGN navigation system developed by SAGEM, and a "smoking" design (although tobacco was banned from its first command). Among the six SNLEs in his class, he is the only one who has not benefited from the modernisation for the M4 missiles, but remains a symbol of French strategic capabilities.

His stopover in Dakar in 1991, unique in Africa for a French SNLE, also marks a notable episode of his career. After its withdrawal, the Ministry of Defence finances its museum development (25 million francs), now offering an immersive dive into the world of submariners and nuclear deterrence.

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