CGC Eagle in drydock at CG Yard, Sector Baltimore

The Coast Guard Cutter Eagle, (WIX-327), is a Gorch Fock-class barque, launched in Germany in 1936 as Horst Wessel. Eagle was taken as a war prize by the United States, and was commissioned in 1946 into the Coast Guard. It's still in active service, harbored in New London, CT. The Eagle 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.