From January 13 to 24, 2025, the student officers boarded the last corvette before their departure for the “Joan of Arc” 2025 mission.
The corvette, named “Enseigne”, brought together nine vessels on which the students were distributed: seven training vessels ( Guépard, Jaguar, Lion, Léopard, Lynx, Panthère, Tigre ), a navigation training vessel ( Glycine ) as well as two schooners ( Belle Poule and Étoile ) and the Dundee Mutin.
The promotion was divided into two task groups, one of which stopped in London and the other in Bruges for the BE (training ships) and the navigation training ship (BIN). Corogne, in Spain, hosted the stopover of the Étoile, Fécamp that of the Belle Poule and Granville that of the Mutin.
A multiple crew with the same ambitions
This corvette brought together in one unit several courses of student officers from the Naval Officers’ Training School. The different levels of experience of each made it possible to successfully complete this training before the upcoming mission.
The students, particularly those on watch on the bridge, were placed in a situation of autonomy in all areas (navigation, anchoring, presentation exercise for refueling, emergency reactions, etc.).
They also took advantage of this corvette to participate in double maneuvers with the beach chiefs, mechanize the autonomous implementation of tools such as the sextant, develop knowledge of the functional security chain and took part in the stopover service.
At the same time, the student commissioners built their third corvette
Among the students who will sail during the “Joan of Arc” mission, there is a class of student commissioners from the Rhine and Danube class.
Last December, as part of their training at the Naval School, the student commissioners took part in a two-week training corvette in the Irish Sea.
Embarked aboard the Lynx training ship , they applied their theoretical knowledge of navigation in a demanding environment. This immersion allowed them to work closely with the crews with whom they will serve, while preparing for the responsibilities of their future duties as watch leaders.
Responsible for conducting the watch, day and night, the student commissioners ensured the route monitoring and safety of the maneuvers, taking into account the maritime conditions and traffic. These scenarios were supplemented by complex exercises, such as the coordination of a pre-refueling at sea and an air-naval maneuver.
These corvettes consolidated the students’ skills, preparing them for their five-month embarkation as part of the Jeanne d’Arc mission and more broadly for their first embarked assignment.