Disgraced return

While many might have paid good money to cruise around the waters off the coast of South America, the Gorch Fock's latest jaunt was hardly a pleasure trip for those on board.

The Gorch Fock, a military training ship where hard work and drills are part of the everyday for the marines on board, has been used by the German military since it was built by Blohm + Voss in Hamburg in 1958.

Since then the ship has logged almost 750,000 nautical miles, or a distance equivalent to about 35 times around the world. More than 14,500 officers and officer candidates of the German navy have trained at sea on the Gorch Fock.

Last August, the vessel set off on its current journey, its 156th training trip. On November 7, off the coast of Bahia, Brazil, tragedy struck. A 25-year-old cadet was killed when she fell 27 meters (89 feet) to the deck.

The incident made headlines, especially in the tabloid press. The then-Defense Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg, officially in charge of the ship, decided to act. On November 19 the training programs on the ship were ended and the marines were sent to the naval academy in Flensburg to continue their education.

A search for answers

In early 2011 a letter written by the parliamentary commissioner for the German military, Hellmut Königshaus, was made public.

In this letter he reported suspicions that there had been massive pressure on the cadets on board the ship. And the worst thing that can happen on a ship - mutiny - had also taken place on the Gorch Fock. This led Guttenberg to order an investigation into what exactly had happened on board the vessel.

On January 22, the defense minister suspended Norbert Schatz, the commander of the ship. Six days later the investigation team began their work on board the ship in the Argentine port of Ushuaia, investigations that have continued as the Gorch Fock makes its way home to Kiel.

In early March the team submitted its report. The Defense Ministry distanced itself from the findings, saying there would be no further review of the incidents on the trip.

Worries for the future

While the Gorch Fock made its way across the Atlantic toward home, parts of Guttenberg's military reform plans were implemented, including the end of compulsory military service.

As time went on, however, it became clear that some reforms would not be financially viable. In the marines and on board the Gorch Fock there was concern that the ship could be put out of service to save money, with the move justified by the events in South America.

As the ship inched ever nearer in early May, several politicians weighed in on the issue. The defense expert of the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), Hans-Peter Bartels, for example, said he was in favor of the Gorch Fock's continued use as a training ship.

"It's become a national symbol," he told the newspaper the Mitteldeutsche Zeitung. Both the German Armed Forces Association and Königshaus, the parliamentary commissioner, have petitioned the government in favor of the Gorch Fock.

Königshaus told the German news agency dpa that "the training risks must be reduced as much as possible." But he was now convinced that training on board a sailing ship like the Gorch Fock had undeniable advantages, he said.

The decision of "whether the Gorch Fock should sail again, must be decided by those in charge in the navy," he said. Königshaus planned to visit the ship once those on board had finished their "well-earned shore leave."

The new man in charge of the ship - Guttenberg's replacement, Thomas de Maiziere - has already given the sailors on board some hope. On Wednesday, the navy inspector brought a message from the new defense minister, telling the sailors that they could be proud of their achievements on the journey and welcoming them back to Germany.

Author: Dirk Kaufmann / hf
Editor: Martin Kuebler