December 10, 2007: The French Navy sent a virtual (but real looking) frigate to the online game Second Life for a one week visit (November 29-December 4). The purpose was to help recruit the nearly 4,000 new sailors the navy needs to attract in the next year. Sailors from the Marine Nationale Française (French Navy) were on hand during prime time to answer questions and try to recruit those eligible. The sailors included carrier pilots and female sailors. The virtual frigate had lots of detail, and you could spend a lot of time looking over all of it. There was also a contest, with the winner getting a one day visit to a real frigate. The virtual frigate got over 5,000 visitors, but no figures on new recruits were released.