The transatlantic "France", the day of its launch, on May 11, 1960, in the shipyards of the Atlantic at Saint Nazaire. Several hundred thousand spectators attend this event. The vessel was launched at 1615, half an hour before the open sea. At 4:30 pm, General de Gaulle delivered a speech, which ended with "And now that France ends and goes to the ocean, to sail and serve! Long live France, long live France! ".