42.6% in 1950, dropped to 5.3% in 1970, and was just 4.1% in 1990. The
number of US flag ships was 3,408 in 1950, dropped to 1,708 in 1970, and was just 635
ships in 1990.
A related phenomenon (reflecting essentially the same problem) has been
what is known as "flagging out", that is, registering a ship not with the flag
of the country of the shipowner, but with another, foreign flag. Flags such as Liberia,
Panama, Malta, the Bahamas, and Cyprus have been responsible for much of the flagging out
that has occurred over the years. The phenomenon of flagging out is pervasive in many
merchant fleets worldwide. Thus, in 1992, whereas the EU owned fleet numbered 6,735 ships,
the EU flag fleet was only 3,573 ships. The fleets of the United States (1,021 vs. 469
ships) and of Japan (2,835 vs. 1,128 ships) faced similar problems (source: Lloyds
Register of Shipping; ships of 1,000 GRT and above).
Realizing that manning costs are frequently a major percentage of ship
operating costs, one of the measures that have been contemplated in order to help reverse
this trend has been the design, development, and operation of highly automated ships
manned by reduced crews. The rationale for such a measure is that under appropriate
circumstances the savings realized by a reduced payroll could, over the ship's lifetime,
offset the additional capital cost of the automated ship, and hence make that ship more
competitive than an equivalent conventional ship, even if the latter is manned by a
low-salary crew.
Can a ship's crew be arbitrarily small in size? National and
international regulations are quite specific on minimum allowable crew requirements as
functions of ship type, size, and technology (e.g., engine room crew may be a function of
engine type or horsepower). The purpose of these regulations is mainly to ensure a minimum
standard of safety for the ship. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) through the
International Convention for the Safety Of Life At Sea (SOLAS) has adopted various
measures on the principles of safe manning (resolution A.48 1(XII)). In addition, the 1978
Convention on Standards of Training, Certification, and Watchkeeping for Seafarers (STCW
Convention) has adopted standards for crew training, certification, and watchkeeping. It
should be noted here that such guidelines specify only the minimum levels that are
allowed. For various reasons (e.g., maintenance, training, etc.) a ship may have a crew
composition that is larger than these minimum levels. If this is the case, no further
certification or approval is necessary. On the other hand, there may be cases for which
the shipowner wishes to employ a smaller crew than the one stipulated by the regulations.
In such cases, the proposed reduced crew composition has to get special approval by the
appropriate national maritime authorities.
