NAe São Paulo (pennant number A12) was a in service with the Brazilian Navy. São Paulo was first commissioned in 1963 by the French Navy as and was transferred in 2000 to Brazil, where she became the new flagship of the Brazilian Navy. IHS Jane's reported that during her career with the Brazilian Navy, São Paulo suffered from serviceability issues and never managed to operate for more than three months at a time without the need for repairs and maintenance.
On 14 February 2017, the navy announced the ship's demobilisation and subsequent decommissioning. On 12 March 2021 the carrier was sold to be scrapped. After Turkey rejected permission to dock, the Brazilian Navy scuttled the ship in the Atlantic Ocean on 3 February 2023, some off the Brazilian coast in of water.
Background
The aircraft carrier São Paulo was built in France between 1957 and 1960, and served in the French Navy as Foch. In September 2000, she was purchased by Brazil for US$12 million – no aircraft were included in the price – to replace the aged World War II-era carrier , which had been in commission for over 40 years. Brazil had previously approached other countries, such as Spain, who wanted to construct a US$500 million carrier for Brazil, about the acquisition of a carrier. The government had already purchased a squadron of 23 used A-4 Skyhawk fighter planes from Kuwait for $70 million; these planes, along with existing helicopters already in the national defense inventory, were to compose the São Paulo fighter-bomber group. These A-4s (designated AF-1) are capable of carrying armament including rockets, free-fall bombs, and Sidewinder air-to-air missiles.
The Clemenceau-class aircraft carriers, of which São Paulo was the last surviving member, are of conventional CATOBAR design. The flight deck is long by wide; the landing area is angled at 8 degrees off of the ship's axis. The forward aircraft elevator is to starboard, and the rear elevator is positioned on the deck edge to save hangar space. The forward of two catapults is on the bow to port; the second catapult is farther back on the angled landing deck. The hangar deck dimensions are by with overhead.
In September 2000, São Paulo was purchased while still operational, an unusual process for such a large ship. She was received by the Brazilian Navy and was incorporated into the Brazilian Navy on 15 November 2000. The incorporation of São Paulo and the AF-1 fighter group marked the realization of Brazil's long-held goal of being able to conduct aerial defense of its naval forces with fixed-wing aircraft.
President Fernando Henrique Cardoso noted during the transfer ceremony that:
Since her construction, São Paulo has received multiple upgrades, leaving her with a diverse range of technologies. The carrier arrived in Rio de Janeiro on 17 February 2001. São Paulos complement was 1,920 (the ship's company is 64 officers and 1274 sailors, with an additional 582 in the air group).
Brazilian service
In her first three years of service as São Paulo, the ship completed several missions, some in foreign waters, particularly Operations ARAEX, PASSEX, and TEMPEREX, which is used annually to qualify and train the Argentine Navy's Super Étendards and S-2T Turbo Trackers.
Toward the end of her commissioned life, São Paulo mainly served to train pilots to fly carrier operations. She was actively used for the qualification and re-qualification of rotary and fixed-wing pilots (with about 500 catapult launches), and she was used during the first Brazilian exercises to practice carrier-based attack missions.
2005 fire
On 17 May 2005, an explosion took place in the steam network of the engine room. The explosion initially killed one crew member and injured ten others. All casualties were airlifted by helicopter to the Marcilio Dias Naval Hospital, Rio de Janeiro. Two of the injured crew later died in hospital from their injuries. The cause of the explosion was a rupture in the steam pipeline. After this accident, the Navy decided to undertake an extensive overhaul to repair and modernize the ship.