Outline of Seiun Maru

The former Seiun Maru was built in November, 1968 as the first 5,000t large-sized training ship in our country, had embarked cadets who became the bearers of marine business of our country, and had performed the training voyage to every corner of the earth. Moreover, it had contributed to educational programs for seafarers, and had a voyages such as sailing 1.017.000 nautical miles equivalent to 47 rounds of the earth and as educating about 8.900 cadets.

The Institute for Sea Training had a party of six training ships, two sailing ships, two diesel ships, two turbine ships, and performed the sea training for the cadets from the Universities of Mercantile Marine, Colleges of Maritime Technology, Maritime Technical Colleges and Schools for Seafarers Training.

About the replace of The Seiun Maru, in order to train the excellent shipmate supporting the Marine business in Japan, it was built according to the plan made from 1995 for three years as considering as the diesel ship which had the modernistic equipment as a training ship in the 21st century.

A Construction of the new Seiun Maru was started at Sumitomo Heavy Industries Yokosuka Shipyard on March 6 1996. It was launched on March 4 1997, and was delivered at Sumitomo Heavy Industries Uraga Shipyard on November 1 1997.

Its launching ceremony was conducted in the presence of the Crown Prince and Princess, and Princess Masako cut the launching rope receiving the blessing of the attendants who amounts to about 6.000 persons.

The letter of ship's name of the new Seiun Maru was based on Transport Minister Yoshiyuki Kamei's writing at that time.

The Seiun Maru is used not only for training the cadets who supported marine business of our country in the 21st century, but also used for various kinds of investigation, research, examination which are taken place on actual ships..

We believe that it contributed to development of marine business and shipbuilding.

Now, in addition to a domestic training voyage (the Japanese coast and adjacent seas), The Seiun Maru once hold an ocean training voyage (round-the-world training voyage) for the year.