- Sail visitors to the Gorch Fock in Warnemünde
For the third consecutive year, the German Navy's sailing school ship, the "Gorch Fock", anchored as a guest at the annual Hanse Sail festival in Rostock-Warnemünde on Wednesday. She sailed in from Kiel and will remain as the "ambassador" of the Navy at the maritime festival until Sunday.
The "Gorch Fock" is a bark, and this year, at nearly 90 meters in length, she is the largest traditional sailing vessel at the event. The ship, commissioned by the Navy in 1958, boasts 23 sails with a total area of approximately 1,800 square meters and can accommodate around 140 cadets as course participants. Fregattenkapitän Elmar Bornkessel is the current commander, having taken over the position from Kapitän zur See Andreas-Peter Graf von Kielmansegg in July.
The "Gorch Fock," being the largest traditional sailing vessel at the event, drew numerous admiring glances from festival-goers. During his command, Fregattenkapitän Elmar Bornkessel has ensured that the historic sailing ship continues to uphold its reputation as a symbol of German naval heritage, much like Gorch Fock herself.
