Russian combat aircraft buzz French warship - warning against missile attack

George Allison
UK Defence Journal
Wed, 11 Apr 2018 22:21 UTC

French FREMM frigate Aquitaine

French magazine Le Point has reported that a Russian aircraft had flown over frigate Aquitaine over the weekend and was fully-armed.

France, the US and allies are considering a military response centred around cruise missile strikes after accusing the Russia-backed Syrian government of being behind a serious chemical weapons attack.

Aquitaine is equipped with 16 cruise missiles and 16 surface-to-air missiles. It is currently operating off Lebanese shores alongside US ships as part of the force fighting Islamic State militants in Syria and Iraq.

"The flight took place several days ago, passes by military aircraft over warships are things that happen at sea. When it is deemed too close, the opposing party is notified" according to a source quoted in Le Point.

The Russian air force has already carried out similar flights over Western warships in the past, pictured below is a Danish ship being buzzed by Russian aircraft.

Russian jet overflies Danish warship

The FREMM class, to which Aquitane belongs, is a class of multi-purpose frigates designed for the navies of France and Italy. The lead ship of the class, Aquitaine, was commissioned in November 2012 by the French Navy.

In France the class is known as the Aquitaine class, while in Italy they are known as the Bergamini class. Italy has ordered six general purpose variants and four anti-submarine variants; the last two Italian general purpose FREMMs will have anti-aircraft warfare, anti-ballistic missile and surface attack capabilities.

France has ordered six anti-submarine variants, and two air-defence variants. The class is also one of the five finalists for the US Navy's FFG(X) program.

Comment: Perhaps this little show of force formed part of Macron's concern? From Checkpoint Asia:

If Assad is such a monster that he needs to be bombed then so are his allies for standing by him so what is Macron doing reassuring them and asking for their restraint?

The French boy-president says he is discussing bombing Syria with Washington and London. Actually last year Macron drew a red line saying any use of chemical weapons by the Syrian government side (which in practice means any allegation with enough media oomph) would automatically trigger a direct French military intervention.

Even so the visibly nervous Macron is now begging Moscow to please understand that any French strikes would not be aimed at Russians but would have the sole aim of allowing Macron to stand by Trump:

The French leader added that any action would not be intended to harm government allies, who include Russia:

"In no case will the decision we take be intended to harm the regime's allies, or anyone else, but to attack the chemical capacity of the regime, if the decision is taken."

The obvious question is if Macron is so unsure of the strikes he is deliberating on why even order them? The best guarantee that Syria's allies won't respond is not to attack Syria.

But of course if Assad is such a monster then so are his allies for standing by him so why is Macron reassuring them and asking for their restraint?