By Yeganeh Torbati

ABOARD THE CHARLES DE GAULLE, Dec 19 (Reuters) – French and U.S. officers boast of the closeness of their navy alliance, as highlighted by Saturday’s go to from U.S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter to a French plane provider within the Gulf.

But even at sea, some cultural variations are obvious: French sailors can imbibe alcohol inside moderation whereas on ship, whereas American sailors observe a coverage of just about complete abstinence.

There aren’t any fewer than 4 bars on the Charles de Gaulle, the place troops should buy one alcoholic drink per day.

On Saturday morning, French sailors ready and served espresso behind a big curved bar outfitted with wood stools. A wall signal marketed out there drinks, together with Heineken or draft beers for 1.25 euros ($1.36), or Baileys, Johnnie Walker or wine for 1.50 euros ($1.63).

“We are French,” stated a spokesman for the French Navy, Commander Lionel Delort. “Wine is very appreciated on board.”

Not so inside the U.S. Navy, which has a strict no-drinking coverage aboard its ships, with few exceptions. For occasion, if a vessel has been at sea for 45 consecutive days or extra, sailors are allowed to have two beers, on a one-time foundation.

Carter’s go to on Saturday to the Charles de Gaulle plane provider was designed to spotlight the joint resolve of U.S. and French forces to defeat Islamic State, which claimed accountability for assaults that killed 130 individuals in Paris final month. Both international locations are conducting air strikes in opposition to the militants in Syria and Iraq.

There are about 10 U.S. service personnel at anybody time on the Charles de Gaulle, the place they’re ruled by French guidelines of conduct – that means they’ll drink, too.

“It’s a cultural thing. We view alcohol very differently than the French do,” stated Anthony, a U.S. Navy lieutenant, explaining the U.S. coverage. He declined to provide his final identify.

The Royal Canadian Navy final yr banned alcohol at sea aside from particular events, after allegations of drunken misconduct by some crew whereas at port in San Diego.

To forestall the danger of tipsy sailors round lethal weaponry, the French use an digital scanning system to trace who has already reached the restrict of a drink per day.

The Charles de Gaulle started its long-planned present deployment on Nov. 18, days after the Paris assaults. During 10 days within the jap Mediterranean, it launched 10 to fifteen flight missions per day focusing on Islamic State, and is because of resume operations quickly, after arriving within the Gulf on Friday.

During a current lunch, sailors requested for a second bottle of wine however had been refused by their quartermaster, Delort recounted.

“This is not a spring break,” he stated. “You have to be fit.” ($1 = 0.9206 euros) (; Editing by Mark Trevelyan)

(c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015.