Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier fire in Toulon

A fire broke out on the French aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle on Monday, October 5, 2026, while the vessel was undergoing scheduled maintenance at the Toulon naval base. The alarm was triggered shortly before 11:30 AM in a technical room measuring less than ten square meters, located near the aviation hangar.

The crew responded immediately, supported by firefighters from the Toulon naval base and specialists from the Marseille Naval Firefighters Battalion. The fire was brought under control by 12:35 PM and declared extinguished by 1:50 PM.

The Mediterranean Maritime Prefecture reported that there were no injuries and no impact on the ship’s nuclear installations. Because the carrier is currently in a shipyard period for maintenance, no aircraft were in the adjacent hangar at the time of the incident. Preliminary findings suggest the fire was likely caused by cutting work involving a torch. An investigation is ongoing to determine if safety regulations were violated or if a technical defect was responsible.