Three French Navy Rafale Marine aircraft, attached to the aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle, landed at Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) Base Darwin on 19 January 2025.
The three aircraft - supported by other Rafale Marines who acted as 'buddy' tankers for the transit - flew to RAAF Base Darwin from Charles De Gaulle while the carrier was more than 1800 kilometres away to take part in Exercise Rastaban with RAAF F-35As.
"Named RASTABAN, this power projection from the sea is the second one conducted in this major strategic area of the Indopacific. It demonstrates the operational capabilities of the French Navy and France's commitment to an open and free Indo-Pacific, through its pre-positioned forces in the region and regular missions from mainland France," the French Embassy in Canberra said in a statement.
Charles De Gaulle and its Carrier Strike Group (CSG) are deployed in the Indo Pacific as part of the French Clemenceau 25 mission, which includes several exercises with the Australian Defence Force including Rastaban with the RAAF. HMAS Hobart, meanwhile, is participating in the French CSG-led multinational Exercise La Perouse 2025 while the CSG will also take part in Exercise Pacific Stellar alongside Australian, Canadian, Japanese and US forces later this year.
The French Auxiliary Oiler Replenishment, Jacques Chevallier, is also expected to make a port visit to Darwin while the French CSG is operating near Australia.