Saudi Group offers $6 million for hull of Brazilian aircraft carrier Sao Paulo.

According to information published by Folha de Sao Paulo on February 1, 2023, the Saudi Arabian business group Sela has contacted the Brazilian Navy to buy the hull of the aircraft carrier São Paulo.
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Ex-Brazilian aircraft carrier Sao Paulo. (Picture source: Brazilian Navy)

São Paulo, a Clemenceau-class aircraft carrier, was originally commissioned as Foch by the French Navy in 1963 and was transferred to the Brazilian Navy in 2000.

Despite being the flagship of the Brazilian Navy, the ship had serviceability issues and was rarely operational for more than three months. In 2017, the Brazilian Navy announced its demobilization and decommissioning, and it was sold for scrapping in 2021. However, Turkey rejected scrapping the ship, and the Brazilian Navy planned to scuttle it in international waters in 2023.

About the aircraft carrier

São Paulo was a Clemenceau-class aircraft carrier with a displacement of 24,200 tonnes and 32,800 tonnes when fully loaded. She was 265 meters in length, 31.7 meters in beam, and had a draught of 8.60 meters.

The aircraft carrier was powered by 6 Indret boilers and 4 steam turbines producing 126,000 horsepower, and had a top speed of 32 knots with a range of 7,500 nautical miles.

The complement of Sao Paulo was 1,338 crew members and could carry up to 1,920 including the air group, or 984 if only carrying helicopters. She ship was equipped with various electronic warfare and decoy systems, including air and surface sentry radars, navigation radars, fire radars, and a Crotale EDIR system.

The armament consisted of four 100 mm turrets, two Crotale EDIR systems, five 12.7 mm machine guns, and 4 dual Simbad launchers. Sao Paulo could carry up to 39 aircraft, including 22 jets and 17 helicopters.