Béarn

13.3

Béarn

Aircraft Carrier | France | Tier VI

Tech Tree Position

General

Purchase priceSpecial

Hit Points44,700

Secondary Armament #1

155 mm/50 Mle 1920 on a casemate mount8 х 1 pcs.

Firing Range5.6 km.

Rate of Fire6.67 shots/min.

Reload Time9 sec.

HE Shell155 mm HE OEA Mle 1920

Maximum HE Shell Damage2,200

Initial HE Shell Velocity870 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell11 %

AA Defense

13.2 mm Hotchkiss Mle 1929 on a CAD Mle 1929 mount6 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second21

. . . Firing Range1.2 km.

37 mm/50 Mle 1925 on a CA Mle 1925 mount8 х 1 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second12.8

. . . Firing Range3 km.

75 mm/50 Mle 1922 on an Mle 1922 mount6 х 1 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second21.6

. . . Firing Range3 km.

Maneuverability

Maximum Speed21.5 knot

Turning Circle Radius790 m.

Rudder Shift Time12.9 sec.

Concealment

Surface Detectability Range12.57 km.

Air Detectability Range9.18 km.

Battle Levels

12345678910

13.3

Béarn

Aircraft Carrier | France | Tier VI

Tech Tree Position

General

Purchase priceSpecial

Hit Points44,700

Secondary Armament #1

155 mm/50 Mle 1920 on a casemate mount8 х 1 pcs.

Firing Range5.6 km.

Rate of Fire6.67 shots/min.

Reload Time9 sec.

HE Shell155 mm HE OEA Mle 1920

Maximum HE Shell Damage2,200

Initial HE Shell Velocity870 m./s.

Chance of Fire on Target Caused by HE Shell11 %

AA Defense

13.2 mm Hotchkiss Mle 1929 on a CAD Mle 1929 mount6 х 2 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second21

. . . Firing Range1.2 km.

37 mm/50 Mle 1925 on a CA Mle 1925 mount8 х 1 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second12.8

. . . Firing Range3 km.

75 mm/50 Mle 1922 on an Mle 1922 mount6 х 1 pcs.

. . . Average Damage per Second21.6

. . . Firing Range3 km.

Maneuverability

Maximum Speed21.5 knot

Turning Circle Radius790 m.

Rudder Shift Time12.9 sec.

Concealment

Surface Detectability Range12.57 km.

Air Detectability Range9.18 km.

Battle Levels

12345678910

VI

Special

Béarn — French special premium Tier VI aircraft сarrier.

Béarn was laid down as a Normandie-class battleship, but unlike her sister ships, she featured a turbine propulsion unit instead of a mixed one. After the Washington Naval Conference, the ship was rebuilt as an aircraft carrier. In the late 1930s, it was decided to re-equip Béarn as a seaplane base while retaining the possibility of housing wheeled aircraft; however, the outbreak of World War II hindered these plans. During the war, Béarn transported aircraft, gold, troops, and equipment.

Béarn was first released for sale in December of 2021.

Modules

	Hit Points (HP)	Armor (mm)	Armor (mm)	Main Turrets (pcs.)	Secondary Gun Turrets (pcs.)	AA Mounts (pcs.)	Torpedo Tubes (pcs.)	Hangar Capacity (pcs.)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Béarn	44,700	10	83		8	6/8/6				0	0

	Maximum Bomb Damage (HP)	Speed (knot)	Hit Points (HP)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Vought V-156F		123	1,490		0	0

	Maximum Bomb Damage (HP)	Speed (knot)	Hit Points (HP)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()

	Maximum Speed (knot)		Research price (exp)	Purchase price ()
Propulsion: 39,000 hp	21.5		0	0

Compatible Upgrades

Slot 1
Slot 2
Slot 3
Slot 4

Player Opinion

Performance

Warning. The data presented in the AA Defense sidebar section may be incorrect.
Refer to the in-game Port screens for more useful data.

Béarn is a support carrier that can specialize in a more defensive playstyle. Her strike planes are solid, but her fighters are amazing. Due to this, this carrier does well in counter carrier tactics which can be effective in random battles but even more so in ranked battles.

Vought V-156F Skip Bombers

Her skip bombers are effective against all ship classes. The bombs have solid alpha, good fire chance, and break the 26mm and 32mm armor threshold for battleships all the way to tier 8. They are also accurate and only skip two times therefore making them easier to aim which helps hit destroyers more consistently. However, unlike the skip bombers found on Max Immelmann and the Russian aircraft carriers, the skip bombers have a longer attack initiation phase before the skip bombs are able to be dropped, so attacks must be planned in advance. A full squad drops 4 bombs per attack run and can make 4 attack runs with a single squad, making Bearn quite effective against destroyers.

Vought V-156F Dive Bombers

The armor-piercing dive bombers are only effective against capital ships. Unlike other carriers in tier, each attack run drops four AP bombs instead of two, making her damage output more consistent. However, the AP bombs have low alpha and lower pen, and thus require proper reticle lineup and careful target selection to get the full value out of each drop.

Patrol Fighters

Finally, the high-power patrol fighters are what makes the Bearn unique. With high health and a large patrol radius, these fighters resist anti-aircraft fire and greatly restrict enemy aircraft movement. Unlike other carriers in tier, Béarns fighters come in squadrons of eight instead of three. Thus, with a successful lock-on, one fighter deployment can shoot-down an entire enemy attack squadron. With a long 100 second base action time, these fighters pose a significant threat across multiple enemy attack waves. Furthermore, as each squadron type carries eight consumables, Béarns can maintain fighter coverage during the entire match. The fighters' only weakness is a substandard 2km spotting range. To mitigate this, captains can run Interceptor to increase patrol radius and grant immunity to counter-fighter deployments. However, spotting may still be desired so captains should spec into Search and Destroy and Enhanced Reactions to get the most out of Béarn.

When commanding the Béarn, captains should look for air space to deploy their patrol fighters with every single plane deployment. Doing this properly will slow down or completely counter the opposing aircraft carrier. However, keep in mind that Béarnshould also be striking enemy vessels as much as possible. Thus, fighters should be strategically dropped in a time-efficient manner on the way to your target.

Pros:

• High durability and high patrol radius on fighters
• Fighter squadrons shoot down eight planes instead of three or four
• Fighter consumables have eight uses instead of three
• Above-average plane speed and durability reduces losses to AA during strikes
• Skip bombs deal good damage with good penetration and fire chance
• Dive bombers drop four bombers instead of two, giving it a high theoretical alpha strike
• Relatively tanky hull for a tier VI carrier

Cons:

• Slow hull speed
• Weak secondaries and anti-air
• Middling hull concealment
• Low fighter view range (2 km)
• Low individual AP bomb damage
• Lacks a third squadron type
• Lacks torpedo bombers and rocket attack aircraft

Research

As a premium ship, Béarn has no module upgrades to research.

Optimal Configuration

Captains should build Béarn for a full defensive build or for a semi offensive support build. This decision revolves around whether or not your commander is specialized with the interceptor skill.

Upgrades

The recommended upgrades for Béarn are as follows:

• Slot 1: Air Groups Modification 1 for better availability of planes when you need them.
• Slot 2: Aircraft Engines Modification 1 for higher cruising speed.
• Slot 3: Skip Bomber Modification 1 for longer attack time.
• Slot 4: Bombers Modification 1 for a larger HP pool.

Commander Skills

It is recommended to use Philippe Auboyneau for improved Survivability Expert.

• Note: Hidden Menace states that your planes reach safe altitude at 50% lower height which is not true because your planes are still vulnerable to flak, therefore the skill is bugged and not recommended.

Full Defense Build

Recommended Commander Skills
Cost (points)	Attack			Defense		Support
1	Last Gasp Completely restores engine boost for the last attack squadron.	Improved Engine Boost +10% Aircraft engine boost time. ★	Engine Techie -20% Engine Cooling cooldown time.	Air Supremacy -5% aircraft restoration time.	Direction Center for Fighters +1 fighter to CAP squadrons.	Search and Destroy +10% to action radius of Patrol Fighter and Interceptor squadrons. ★★★
2	Torpedo Bomber -10% torpedo arming distance.	Swift Fish +5% to torpedo speed.	Improved Engines +2.5% aircraft squadron speed. ★★★	Repair Specialist +1 In-flight Repair consumable +10% its action time.	Secondary Armament Expert +10% flak and continuous damage -10% secondary battery reload time.	Patrol Group Leader +1 fighter to Patrol Fighter or Interceptor squadrons.
3	Sight Stabilization +7.5% aiming speed.	Enhanced Armor-Piercing Ammunition +3% damage from AP bombs and rockets.	Pyrotechnician +1% chance of HE rockets causing a fire. +5% chance of HE bombs causing a fire.	Aircraft Armor -10% continuous AA damage while in an aura. ★★★	Survivability Expert +25 aircraft HP per ship tier. ★★★	Interceptor Interceptors replace Patrol Fighters:  +10% action radius.  Invulnerable to fighters.  Cannot attack fighters.  Cannot spot ships. ★
4	Bomber Flight Control +5% speed all bomber types. ★★	Proximity Fuze -10% (absolute) to target's torpedo protection.	Close Quarters Expert Secondary batteries: +20% range -30% dispersion.	Enhanced Aircraft Armor -25% damage from flak.	Hidden Menace -15% ship detectability range. -20% Damage Control Party cooldown. +50% aircraft return time.	Enhanced Reactions -80% time before activated Patrol Fighters or Interceptors attack. +25% action time. +50% cooldown time. ★★
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful      ★★ - Frequently Useful      ★ - Occasionally Useful     No stars - Not Useful

Offensive Support Build

Recommended Commander Skills
Cost (points)	Attack			Defense		Support
1	Last Gasp Completely restores engine boost for the last attack squadron.	Improved Engine Boost +10% Aircraft engine boost time.	Engine Techie -20% Engine Cooling cooldown time.	Air Supremacy -5% aircraft restoration time.	Direction Center for Fighters +1 fighter to CAP squadrons.	Search and Destroy +10% to action radius of Patrol Fighter and Interceptor squadrons. ★★★
2	Torpedo Bomber -10% torpedo arming distance.	Swift Fish +5% to torpedo speed.	Improved Engines +2.5% aircraft squadron speed. ★★★	Repair Specialist +1 In-flight Repair consumable +10% its action time.	Secondary Armament Expert +10% flak and continuous damage -10% secondary battery reload time.	Patrol Group Leader +1 fighter to Patrol Fighter or Interceptor squadrons.
3	Sight Stabilization +7.5% aiming speed.	Enhanced Armor-Piercing Ammunition +3% damage from AP bombs and rockets.	Pyrotechnician +1% chance of HE rockets causing a fire. +5% chance of HE bombs causing a fire.	Aircraft Armor -10% continuous AA damage while in an aura. ★★★	Survivability Expert +25 aircraft HP per ship tier. ★★★	Interceptor Interceptors replace Patrol Fighters:  +10% action radius.  Invulnerable to fighters.  Cannot attack fighters.  Cannot spot ships.
4	Bomber Flight Control +5% speed all bomber types. ★★	Proximity Fuze -10% (absolute) to target's torpedo protection.	Close Quarters Expert Secondary batteries: +20% range -30% dispersion.	Enhanced Aircraft Armor -25% damage from flak. ★	Hidden Menace -15% ship detectability range. -20% Damage Control Party cooldown. +50% aircraft return time.	Enhanced Reactions -80% time before activated Patrol Fighters or Interceptors attack. +25% action time. +50% cooldown time. ★★
Key: ★★★ - Extremely Useful      ★★ - Frequently Useful      ★ - Occasionally Useful     No stars - Not Useful

Consumables

The consumables available for the ship and each plane type for Béarn are the same as the other T6 CVs and are as follows:

Ship

• Slot 1: Damage Control Party 
• Slot 2: CAP Fighter  [8]

Skip Bombers

• Slot 1: Engine Cooling  [2]
• Slot 2: Patrol Fighter  [8]

Dive Bombers

• Slot 1: Engine Cooling  [2]
• Slot 2: Patrol Fighter  [8]

Camouflage

Béarn comes with Type 10 permanent camouflage that lowers her detection radius, reduces the accuracy of incoming shells, reduces her service cost, and increases the amount of experience she earns.

Signals

As a carrier, Béarn has no risk of detonating.

• Note: Carriers burn at 1% health per a second while all other ships burn at 0.3% a second. So even though Carriers burn for only 5 seconds for each fire, if caught off of DCP, multiple fires can be set over and over again making a carrier lose more health to fires than any surface ship within a short duration.

Recommended Signal Flags
Combat
Juliet Charlie -100% to the risk of magazine detonation.	Juliet Yankee Bissotwo -20% to flooding duration. ★★	India Yankee -20% to fire duration. ★★	Hotel Yankee -20% to damage received when ramming the enemy. +50% to damage dealt when ramming the enemy. ★	Victor Lima +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +4% chance of torpedoes causing flooding. ★★★	India X-Ray +1% chance for HE bombs and shells with a caliber above 160mm causing a fire. +0.5% chance for bombs and smaller shells causing a fire. +5% to the risk of your ship's magazine detonating. ★★★
Juliet Whiskey Unaone +15% chance of causing flooding. +5% to the risk of your ship's magazine detonating.	Mike Yankee Soxisix +5% to secondary battery maximum firing range. -5% to maximum dispersion of secondary battery shells. -5% to secondary battery loading time. ★	November Echo Setteseven +5% continuous AA damage at all ranges. +5% damage from flak bursts. ★★★	Sierra Mike +5% to the ship's maximum speed. ★★★	November Foxtrot -5% reload time on all consumables. ★	India Delta +20% to the amount of HP recovered when Repair Party  is used.
X-Ray Papa Unaone +10% action time of a Smoke Generator .	Sierra Bravo +10% action time of Hydroacoustic Search  -10% reload time of Defensive AA Fire .

Note: Use of the Juliet Charlie signal makes detonation impossible.

Gallery

Historical Info

Béarn, 1927-1967

Construction

Builder: Forges et Chantiers de la Méditerranée

Laid down: 10 January 1914

Launched: 15 April 1920

Commissioned: 5 December 1927

Decommissioned: 31 March 1967

Stricken: 31 March 1967

Fate: sold for scrap

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Specifications

22,146 long tons displacement, 22,501 standard

28,400 long tons full load, 29,900 standard full load

574 ft 2 in (175 m) length at waterline

598 ft 9 in (182.5 m) length overall

88 ft 7 in (27 m) beam at waterline

115 ft 6 in (35.2 m) beam overall

29 ft 1in (8.86 m) draft full load

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Machinery

2 triple-expansion steam engines

1 steam turbines

4 shafts

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Performance

21.5 knots(39.8 km/h, 24.7 mph)

44,384 shaft horsepower

6,600 nm(12,200 km, 7,600 mi) range,

at 12 knots(22 km/h, 14mph)

---

Armor

Main belt: 11 7/8 in (300 mm)

Upper armored deck; 1-3 in (26-80 mm)

Lower armored decks: 1/2-2 3/4 in (14-70mm)

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Armament

(8) × single 155 mm (6.1 in) guns

---

Secondary Armament

(12) × single 8 mm (0.31 in) machine guns

---

Anti-Aircraft

(6) × single 75 mm (3 in) AA guns

(8) × single 37 mm (1.5 in) AA guns

---

Complement

875 crew size

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Aircraft & Handling

32 Aircraft Normal load

3 aircraft elevators

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Béarn, named for a historical province, was an under-construction Normandie-class battleship in the 1920s which was converted into an aircraft carrier.

Her intended use was to develop tactics and techniques for carrier aviation operations. She would undergo five refits before the beginning of World War II as these tactics and techniques developed. The forward elevator had a unique two-story design so that, when lowered, the flight deck could still be used. In March 1936, Béarn launched a Potez 565, marking the first time in history a twin-engined aircraft operated from an aircraft carrier.

With her only involvement being training pilots off the coast during the early stages of the war, Béarn remained the only aircraft carrier France produced until after World War II.

Service History

In June 1940 Béarn was diverted to Martinique in the French West Indies when the French signed an armistice with Germany. She was underway to purchase and return with a load of aircraft from the United States. Concerned that Germany would take control of Béarn if she returned to France, the United States pressured the local commander to immobilize her in mid- 1942. In 1943, the Vichy government ordered her to be sabotaged. Eventually following the order the local commander ran her aground and flooded the boiler room.

After the islands joined the Free French later that year, she was towed to Puerto Rico for preliminary repairs. This allowed her to sail to New Orleans, Louisiana, for conversion into an aircraft ferry. This refit was completed in early 1945, and underway with her first load of aircraft she Collided with another ship. This forced her to divert to French Morocco for six months of emergency repairs. Once seaworthy again she transported personnel and equipment between Metropolitan France and French North Africa for several months.

In October she sailed for French Indochina with aircraft, material, and supplies. Returning home a year later Béarn was immediately placed in reserve. After two years she was reactivated as the Marine Nationale's submarine flagship and served as a sub tender. In 1960 Béarn was stripped internally and configured as a barracks ship. In 1966 she was deemed uneconomical to keep afloat and replaced by a newly constructed barracks vessel. She was sold for scrap the following year.

The text has been adapted from [1] and the adaptation is made available under the Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0.

Historical Gallery

• 

  Aerial View of Bearn

• 

  Landing trials being conducted on Bearn

References

Ship Change Log

See here for links to Update notes.

• Available for testing by supertesters in the game starting from Update 0.10.8.

Testing Changes

• DevBlog 191:
  • Preliminary characteristics.
• DevBlog 203:
  • Secondary armament firing range increased from 5 to 5.6 km.
• DevBlog 215:
  • Bomber parameters changed:
    • Number of bombs in payload increased from 1 to 2.
    • Maximum AP bomb damage decreased from 6,300 to 3,600.
    • Bomb arming threshold increased from 30 to 36 mm.
    • Bomb fragmentation area of damage to submarines decreased by approximately 50%.
  • Skip-bomber parameters changed:
    • Number of bombs in payload increased from 1 to 2.
    • Maximum bomb damage decreased from 11,000 to 6,100.
    • Bomb armor penetration decreased from 68 to 32 mm.
    • Chance of a bomb causing fire on a target decreased from 63 to 35%.
    • Accuracy of bombs when dropped and after bounces decreased.
    • Attack time decreased from 10 to 6 s.
    • Attack preparation time increased from 4 to 7 s.
• DevBlog 239:
  • Attack preparation time of Skip bombers decreased from 7 to 6 s.
  • Delay between AP bomb drops decreased from 0.4 to 0.3 s.

• Update 0.10.10:
  • Fixed models and textures.
  • Fixed incorrect display of camouflage on the deck lift.
  • Fixed a bug due to which the air groups on the deck were placed in the wrong order.
  • First went on sale in December 2021.
• Update 0.11.8
  • Skip bombers:
    • HE bomb damage reduced from 6,100 to 5,800.
    • Chances of causing a fire on target reduced from 35% to 33%.

Ships of France

Aircraft Carriers