The BAP Unión is a training ship of the Peruvian Navy. It is a four-masted steel hulled full rigged barque built in 2014 by Shipyard Marine Industrial Services of Peru, known as SIMA. In June 2015, the ship received its masts and propeller; and the interior fitout began in charge of contractors Acopafi and MO Contract. Also, according to an agreement between SIMA and Navantia, the ship was provided with an “Integrated Control System Platform, Navigation and Communications”. The ship’s name honors a Peruvian corvette that took part in the first stage of the 1879-1883 War of the Pacific as part of a naval squadron under the command of Miguel Grau, the most important hero of the Peruvian Navy. Like other similar ships, the Unión has been conceived not only for training purposes, but also to be a sailing ambassador for her home country. Due to its features and dimensions, it has been considered (as of the date it was commissioned) as the largest sail vessel in Latin America. read more…
Sailing ship Europa is a steel-hulled barque from in the Netherlands. Originally it was a German lightship, named Senator Brockes and built in 1911 at the H.C. Stülcken & Sohn shipyard in Hamburg. Until 1977, it was in use by the German Federal Coast Guard as a lightship on the river Elbe. In 1985 a Dutchman bought the vessel (or what was left of it), and in 1994 she was fully restored as a barque, a three mast rigged ship, and retrofitted as a special-purpose sail-training ship. read more…
The STS Sedov, formerly the Magdalene Vinnen II (1921–1936) and the Kommodore Johnsen (–1948), is a 4-masted steel barque that for almost 80 years was the largest traditional sailing ship in operation. Today, it’s the second larges after Royal Clipper. Originally built as a German cargo ship, the Sedov is today a sail training vessel. She participates regularly in the big maritime international events as a privileged host and has also been a regular participant in The Tall Ships’ Races. read more…