The Eagle Returns

On a beautiful Sunday, the sky was clear, no humidity, what I define as the glorious days of the summer in New England  I took a trip to New London and to my surprise I found the Eagle, the US Coast Guard Sailing ship that had just returned from three months of training at the sea.. Even with the sails down it is a majestic ship. It is the sister to the Portuguese Sagres III. Also on the port were the Connecticut own ‘s Amistad and Mystic Whaler.
No matter how many times I get to see the Eagle still find a fascinating sailing ship built in the 30’s in Germany.
After the visit to the Eagle, a walk around, late lunch On the Waterfront. (Photo courtesy of S P A )
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Information – The USCGC Eagle (WIX-327) (formerly the SSS Horst Wessel) is a 295-foot (90 m) barque used as a training cutter for future officers of the United States Coast Guard. She is the only active commissioned steel hulled sailing vessel in American military service. She is the seventh U.S. Navy or Coast Guard ship to bear the name in a line dating back to 1792. Each summer, Eagle conducts cruises with cadets from the United States Coast Guard Academy and candidates from the Officer Candidate School for periods ranging from a week to two months. These cruises fulfill multiple roles; the primary mission is training the cadets and officer candidates, but the ship also performs a public relations role. Often, Eagle makes calls at foreign ports as a goodwill ambassador.

Built as the German training vessel Horst Wessel in 1936, it served to train German sailors in sail techniques until decommissioned at the start of the war. Given anti-aircraft armament it was re-commissioned in 1942. At the end of the war Horst Wessel was taken by the US as war reparations.

Class & type: Gorch Fock-class Barque
Displacement: Full load: 1,784 long tons (1,813 t)
Length: Overall: 295 ft (90 m)
Waterline: 234 ft (71 m)
Beam: 39 ft (12 m)
Draft: Full load: 17.5 ft (5.3 m)
Complement: 19 officers, 56 crew,
175 cadets and instructors
Notes: Current Skipper is Capt. Wes Pulver, USCG