The '''Explorer class''' is a series of large [[container ship]]s built for [[CMA CGM]]. The first five ships are {{convert|365|m|ftin}} long with a nominal capacity of 13,830 [[Twenty-foot equivalent unit|TEU]]; the last three are larger, at {{convert|396|m|ftin}} and 16,020 TEU, making them the world's largest container ships until the delivery of the [[Maersk {{sclass2-|Triple E|container Class]]ship|4}}. Advanced simulators were built to help crews learn how to handle the new ships.<ref name="DNV">{{cite web|url=http://www.dnv.com/industry/maritime/publicationsanddownloads/publications/updates/container/2010/2-2010/cmacgmputscompetenceattheforefrontofitsnewbuildingprogramme.asp|title=CMA CGM puts competence at the forefront of its newbuilding programme|publisher=DNV|accessdate=23 December 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131022211445/http://www.dnv.com/industry/maritime/publicationsanddownloads/publications/updates/container/2010/2-2010/cmacgmputscompetenceattheforefrontofitsnewbuildingprogramme.asp|archive-date=22 October 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>
The ships are mostly named after [[Exploration|explorers]]. [[Benjamin Franklin]] was not an explorer but made contributions to oceanography, [[Georg Forster]] was a naturalist and ethnologist who travelled with explorer [[James Cook]], and [[Jules Verne]] was a novelist who wrote about explorations.
