 They were lowered on the sea with a crane.In April 1910, Vice-Admiral Auguste Boué de Lapeyrère, Navy Minister, established a committee to study the usage of balloons and planes by the navy.On November 29, 1911, a navy airbase was established at Fréjus Saint-Raphaël, and the torpedo boat tender "Foudre" was sent to the naval yard in Toulon to be converted as a seaplane tender.