For "Kaiser Friedrich III", 1904 continued in the same pattern as previous years. The ship took part in a training cruise to Britain that included squadron exercises in the northern North Sea and along the Norwegian coast. During the cruise, the ship stopped in Plymouth, Vlissingen, Lerwick, and Molde. The annual autumn fleet maneuvers, conducted from 29 August to 15 September, passed uneventfully for "Kaiser Friedrich III". On 1 October, she was transferred to II Squadron, where she served as the flagship. She had informally served in this role since 17 September, as the previous flagship, the coastal defense ship , had been decommissioned. Fischel, by now promoted to "Vizeadmiral", raised his flag aboard the ship during her formal transfer to the squadron. The two squadrons of the fleet ended the year with the usual training cruise into the Baltic, which took place uneventfully. The first half of 1905 similarly passed without incident for "Kaiser Friedrich III". On 12 July, the fleet began its annual summer cruise to northern waters; the ships stopped in Gothenburg from 20 to 24 July and Stockholm from 2 to 7 August. The trip ended two days later, and was followed by the autumn fleet maneuvers later that month. On 1 October, the position for the deputy commander of I Squadron was recreated, and "Kapitän zur See" (Captain) Hugo von Pohl was assigned to the role. "Kaiser Friedrich III" was transferred to serve as Pohl's flagship. In December, the fleet took its usual training cruise in the Baltic.