| Le Commandant launched

PONANT has launched Le Commandant Charcot (pictured) during a ceremony last month.

The formalities were attended by Anne Manipoud-Charcot, the great-grand-daughter of French scientist Jean-Baptiste Charcot, for whom the ship is named.

Also on hand were Ponant Chief Executive Officer Herve Gastinel and Captains Etienne Garcia and Patrick Marchesseau.

“The boldness of this project is not just about taking passengers to the far corners of the Arctic and the Antarctic, it is about doing it safely and following the same values and principles of seamanship that move us,” Gastinel said.

The ceremony took place just a few weeks after Le Commandant Charcot reached the North Pole (CW 08 Sep).