Eagle Plans Visit to Portsmouth, Virginia

PORTSMOUTH, Va. — The Coast Guard Cutter Eagle, America’s Tall Ship and seagoing classroom for future officers in training, is scheduled to arrive Sept. 13 in Portsmouth. At 295 feet in length, the Eagle is the largest tall ship flying the stars and stripes and the only active square-rigger in U.S. government service. Constructed in 1936 by the Blohm and Voss Shipyard in Hamburg, Germany, and originally commissioned as the Horst Wessel by the German Navy, the Eagle was taken by the United States as a war reparation following World War II. With more than 23,500 square feet of sail and six miles of rigging, the Eagle has served as a classroom at sea to future Coast Guard officers since 1946, offering an at-sea leadership and professional development experience. A permanent crew of seven officers and 50 enlisted personnel maintain the ship and guide the cadets and officer candidates through an underway and in-port training schedule, dedicated to learning the skills of navigation, damage control, watchstanding, engineering and deck seamanship.