On April 15, 2017 a solemn ceremony was held to put the Mir sailing ship to sea for the first training practice of this year. A total of 131 cadets of Admiral Makarov State University of Maritime and Inland Shipping and Voronin Arctic Maritime Institute went aboard the Mir sailing vessel.

Deputy Director of the FSUE “Rosmorport” North-Western Basin Branch Alexander Strelnikov, President of Makarov State University of Maritime and Inland Shipping Sergei Baryshnikov, Master of the Seaport of Big Port Saint Petersburg Alexander Volkov and other officials participated in the solemn ceremony.

Special guests congratulated cadets on starting navigation practice and wished them and the crew of the sailing vessel fruitful and calm navigation, and also traditionally wished them to “always have at least one finger of water under the keel”. Then Father Oleg, the priest of the Smolensk Cathedral, gave the Icon of St Vladimir the Great to the cadets.

Over three months the cadets will undergo training in such specialties as: marine navigation, operation of ship power plants and shipboard electrical equipment and automation equipment. Apart from training on their specialties, the cadets will study rigging and undergo training on the work with sails.

On the same day the sailing vessel left the Seaport of Passenger Port Saint Petersburg for Wilhelmshaven (Germany). The sailing vessel will approximately arrive in Germany on April 27, 2017. During this year's navigation, the sailing vessel is planning to take part in several races, including Sail Den Helder and The Tall Ships Races 2017.