German training ship Gorch Fock (1958)

Germany lost all of its school ships as war reparations after World War II to the Allies, so the West German decided in 1957 to have a new training vessel built following the plans for the original Gorch Fock of 1933 which by that time was owned by the Soviets, and renamed to Tovarishch. The new ship was a modernized repeat of the Albert Leo Schlageter, a slightly modified sister ship of the previous Gorch Fock. The 1933 Gorch Fock had already been designed to be a very safe ship: she had a righting moment large enough to bring her back into the upright position even when heeling over to nearly 90°. Nevertheless, some last-minute changes to the design were made in response to the disaster in 1957, especially concerning the strength of the body and the bulkheads as well as the lifesaving equipment, including the lifeboats. The new ship was built by Blohm & Voss at Hamburg, and launched on 23 August 1958. The vessel was commissioned on 17 December of that year. Her home port is Kiel. Gorch Fock is a three-masted barque with a steel hull long (without the bowsprit) and wide. She has a draught of and a full load displacement of . Originally, she carried of canvas sails; later, she received slightly larger sails made of synthetic materials. The tops of her fore and main masts can be lowered so that she can navigate the Kiel Canal, otherwise she would be too tall for some of the bridges spanning the canal. Officially Gorch Fock is a Type 441 naval ship with the NATO pennant number A60. Her international radio call sign is DRAX. Renovations and repair problems Over the years, various modernizations have been applied to the ship. She was fitted with air conditioning, the asbestos used originally was removed and replaced by less dangerous materials in 1991, and in that year she also received a new auxiliary engine, a six-cylinder diesel engine producing , giving the ship a top speed of under power. The interior has also been modified multiple times; technological advances made it possible to reduce the size of the galley and enlarge the crew quarters. In November 2015 the ship was brought to the German shipyard Elsflether Werft at Bremerhaven because of hull problems with a first cost estimate of 9.6 million euro. With the discovery of more problems the estimate was stepwise raised to 64.5 million euro within a year. In 2017 it was determined that the amount of work required was much greater; this included the almost complete replacement of the hull plating, renewal of decks and refurbishment of the engine with a cost estimated at 135 million euro. However, in January 2019 the ship was reported to be in a "completely dismantled" state. While Gorch Fock was under repair, her Romanian sister ship was used for training. On 30 September 2021 Gorch Fock returned to the German Navy. ==The figurehead==

The ship's figurehead was designed by Heinrich Schroeteler, a former World War II U-boat commander. The figurehead has been replaced on several occasions: • The first albatross from 1958 was lost after a few years; its replacement was made of wood, like the original. • In 1969, the replacement was removed and replaced by a figurehead made of polyester to save weight. • This albatross broke off when Gorch Fock was being overhauled in 2000. It was replaced by a new one made of wood. • On 11 December 2002, Gorch Focks figurehead was lost in a storm. The replacement was also made of wood. • Again, the figurehead broke off in a storm on 5 December 2003. On 24 February 2004, the ship was fitted with a new albatross, this time made of carbon fibre-reinforced polyester. ==The cruises==

in Flensburg (2009) Gorch Fock has been in German Navy service as a training ship since 1958. Since she has been commissioned, more than 14,500 cadets have been trained on Gorch Fock. Gorch Fock participates in sailing parades and Tall Ships' Races, where she is in amicable rivalry with the Italian vessel . Other ships of the same class include , , the first Gorch Fock and Mircea. Gorch Fock can host up to 350 passengers on board. In 1987–1988, she sailed around the world, with stopovers on five continents. Lasting 336 days, this was her second longest cruise, topped only by a training cruise in 1996–1997 from Kiel to Bangkok and back that lasted 343 days. In the aftermath of the latest accident, naval cadets refused to climb the rigging (the highest position on the main mast being ), and four of them were subsequently accused of "inciting rebellion". This was described as a mutiny in some accounts. Subsequently, officers' training on board Gorch Fock was suspended, pending a thorough review of training protocols as well as the entire training program. According to a 19 November 2010 statement issued by the German Fleet Command, the officer candidates then on board were to be flown back to Germany to continue their training On 13 March 2011, all charges against the commanding officer were dismissed. ==References==