PM Transcripts

I n
Jjj A UST A L I AL&
PIME MINITER
FOR MEDIA 19 February 1987
The United States' most famous Tall Ship, Eagle, will visit
Australia to take part in the Bicentennial celebrations.
The three-masted barque is to join an international fleet in
the Tall Ships event which will culminate in a parade of
sail out of Sydney Harbour on Australia Day, 26 January
1988. I am delighted that President Reagan's personal undertaking
to me to provide a Tall Ship has been fulfilled in this way.
A special feature of the Eagle visit will be the
participation of young Australians in the sailing ship's
crew. It is planned that at least two young Australians
will join the voyage to Australia and back to the US.
The Eagle is e;: pected to arrive in Newcastle on 20 December
where it will spend Christmas before Joining the Tall Ships
event, n Brisl'cne on 30 December for the start of the
Bicentennial year.
The Eagle will then proceed to Hobart to participate in the
Tall Ships Race to Sydney the first such race to be held
in the Southern Hemisphere.
The 90-metre-long Eagle is among the larger tall ships of
the world and it will bring aboard a crew of about 200,
which includes 102 male and 32 female cadets. Originally
built in 1936 in Germany and named, Horst Wessel, it was
claimed by the United States as part of war reparations and
joined the US Coast Guard in 1946.
Tall Ships Australia 1988 is being organised by the
Australian Bicentennial Authority and will bring together
nationally and privately owined sail training vessels from
around the world.
The Federal Republic of Germany, India, Japan, the
Netherlands, Poland, Spain and the United Kingdom have also
accepted the invitation from my Government to participate in
the Tall Ships event. A number of overseas non-government
vessels have also accepted ABA's invitation and some are
already on their way to Australia. other overseas vessels
are still considering their participation, while numerous
Australian groups are well advanced in their plans to join
the event.