Captain Nicole Langosch has become the first German woman to command a cruiseship, but she is far from the first with master's papers.

Langosch set out for Hamburg on the 71,300-gt, 2,050-berth AIDAsol (built 2011). She will command the vessel into 2019, starting with a Norwegian voyage.

The Leer graduate, a former containership cadet and Women's International Shipping & Trading Association member, is a 10-year AIDA Cruises veteran, deputy captain since 2013, and one of 14 female officers with AIDA today.