Sub-Standard Ship

A sub-standard ship is one whose hull, machinery, equipment, or operational safety is below the standard the applicable conventions require, or whose crew is not in conformity with the safe-manning document, to a degree that makes it unseaworthy or a danger to life or the environment. The IMO procedures for port state control (Resolution A.1185(33)) use the concept to justify a detailed inspection and, where the deficiencies are serious, detention. A pattern of sub-standard ships under one flag or recognized organization pushes it down the Paris MoU performance list.