The nuclear aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle is a national pride. State-of-the-art technology that the world envies us, an unlimited range of action, but also – this is less well known – clogged toilets. “The toilet flushes of the Charles de Gaulle are out of service”, confirms John *, reservist, former political consultant specializing in Defense. As a symbol of the paradox observed in their daily life by the French soldiers. “There is not a drop of water. So, to evacuate, we are often reduced to using an emergency system that we activate behind the toilets, and which sucks after having done a little sorting”, modestly continues the reserve officer. one, including foreign dignitaries passing through the building. “A nuclear aircraft carrier that costs 800 billion euros without a flush that works, inevitably, it’s weird”, summarizes John.
The fifteen frigates that sail under the tricolor flag are also known to be… regularly obstructed. “If we put a little too much toilet paper, it’s over, annoyed a naval officer, who chokes: “We manage to launch Rafales, but we are unable to progress on the logistics to make it all more comfortable.” In the wake of the military programming law voted in 2018, which concerns the period from 2019 to 2025, the budget devoted to the armies has however been increased by 1.7 billion euros per year. do not always have the impression of benefiting from these investments in their daily lives. The great prestige of their profession often even hides degraded working conditions. To the point that some openly evoke the “misery” of the army.
Old pipes
“When our regiment moved somewhere in the South-West, a good dozen of us were poisoned with lead. The pipes were dilapidated”, testifies Yvan*. After ten years of service, this soldier has a bitter memory of the years in the barracks: “In the building of my squadron, the showers were clogged. The water flowed from one floor into the electrical panels on the ground floor.” This situation is not limited to a garrison lost in the depths of France. Even in the most operational regiments, renovations are slow in coming. The accommodation in the Satory camp, near Versailles – which notably houses soldiers from the Sentinel mission – is a symbol of the way that remains to be done to rehabilitate dilapidated infrastructure. “Some buildings don’t even have heating or curtains. We were ten per room with metal bunk beds, a rotten mattress and a single sheet, explains Denis*, who frequented them. Admittedly, the soldier must be rustic. But when I think of the Sentinel soldiers who get up at 5 a.m., patrol Paris, come back at 11 p.m…. It’s heartbreaking.”
On the other side of the camp, on the mobile gendarmes and GIGN side, the situation is hardly better. Certainly, after years spent alerting the executive, the town hall of Versailles recently obtained 10 million renovation credits for a barracks. “But the immediate environment must be improved, such as the roads, which are in very poor condition. It is essential”, assures the mayor, François de Mazières, author of a parliamentary report on the renovation of the barracks, in 2015. Elsewhere too, reports are piling up. “Many military barracks are large buildings built in a hurry in the 1970s and 1980s. Of mediocre quality originally, they deteriorated very quickly, continues this former deputy. Electricity, pipes, insulation… The military and their families live in buildings that often combine a little bit of all the problems.” The renovations of certain bases, such as those in Toulon, were appreciated, but remain poorly representative of the general state of the building stock. “A big effort has been made, but there is still a lot to do,” continues François de Mazières.
Ammo issue
The sentiment extends beyond infrastructure. If the last law of military programming, called “at the height of men”, managed to equip the soldiers with new uniforms, the equipment distributed remains rare. “I am only entitled to a pair of shoes for three years, explains Denis, an officer in the navy. Nothing can resist a long mission at sea. The sun, the salt, the walk… Eight months more later, my shoes are gunned down, and I will have to negotiate to get some more.” This habit of “begging”, as he says himself, Denis picked up over his years in the army: “I always have to ask for an extra shirt, because, concretely, I’m not supposed to having only two. It’s not enough.”
These savings, which some call “end of candle”, are particularly significant with regard to ammunition. “In France, the chargers are almost as checked as our HK416s, testifies Yvan. If we lose them or break them, we must write a report, with the possibility of punishment behind.” A meticulousness foreign to other armies, such as those of the United States. “The Americans are spoiled rotten: they have so many chargers that they throw them away at the first opportunity, he continues. At the beginning of 2022, the LR deputies Julien Aubert, Bernard Bouley, Claude de Ganay and Laurence Trastour-Isnart had also written in a letter to Florence Parly, the Minister for the Armed Forces, to inform her that France could run out of ammunition “in just four days of high intensity conflict”. Response from the ministry spokesperson: 7 billion euros are now allocated to ammunition over the period 2019-2025. In summary, patience, progress is coming.
The issue of loyalty
For fear of lack, the men who worked with Yvan did not limit themselves to recovering American ammunition: “We also made sure to take the lithium batteries that the Americans no longer used. They could still be used, so we kept them for training.” Exercises that take place in often drastic conditions, with sometimes deteriorated or unavailable equipment. “When you’re a parachutist, you have to make a minimum number of jumps each year to be renewed, says Yvan. I was struggling because the planes needed for training were either on a mission or broken down.” The same observation is made by Denis, an army officer. “I’ve seen aberrant things, with threadbare equipment. During my training, I handled weapons that were so rusty that I felt like I was serving in a Third World army. , he sighs. It was inadmissible.”
This training on the cheap is all the more problematic when the question of the loyalty of the armed forces arises. “The bulk of the army is made up of young people in their twenties, who leave their daily comfort to find themselves confronted with these conditions, points out John. When they see the working conditions, we understand that they can be discouraged.” The question is not ignored by the executive. The defense section of the finance bill for 2022 largely refers to the issue of loyalty. It is based primarily on improving “the quality of infrastructure, which determines the daily lives of soldiers”. On this point, a lot of work remains to be done.
*Names have been changed.