French Squadron Performs Jet Engine Swap-Out on Board Truman: "As part of interoperability operations with the French Navy, a maintenance crew for the French aircraft Rafale F3 performed a jet engine swap-out on board USS Harry S. Truman (CVN 75) June 4.
The Rafale, a fourth generation fighter jet capable of performing both air-to-air and air-to-ground missions embarked aboard CVN Charles de Gaulle (R 91), was conducting carrier qualifications on board Truman.
'The French have conducted many carrier qualifications (CQs) with U.S. aircraft carriers in the past. However, this is the first time that an engine swap-out with a foreign navy has been done on a U.S. carrier,' said Cmdr. Tim Hill, the VFA-32 executive officer and air wing liaison for French interoperability exercises. 'This is a big step in working towards the ability to operate a French squadron on a U.S. carrier.'
According to French Navy Cmdr. Henri Mahe, the chief maintenance officer for Charles de Gaulle, the Rafale was specifically designed for performance and for efficient maintenance. The seven-man French navy maintenance team from the Rafale squadron 12F completed the engine swap-out in three hours.
Hundreds of Truman service members transiting the hangar bay stopped to take photos and to see the Rafale up close.
Among the onlookers was Aviation Boatswain's Mate (Handling) 3rd Class Heather Martinez, who was standing watch in Truman's primary flight control tower when the Rafale landed. Martinez stated she was impressed by the maneuverability of the aircraft and by the ease with which the jet was recovered.
'We followed the same procedures we do when recovering our own aircraft,' said Martinez. 'It went very smoothly.'"
