Merchant Marine fleet is dying

The once-mighty U.S. Merchant Marine fleet has nearly collapsed under the weight of labor costs, always-changing federal policies, and heavy competition from abroad. Those issues are damaging America’s position as the only country able to supply and sustain a long-distance war. The U.S. Merchant Marines has declined from 1,288 international trading vessels in 1951 to 81. “It’s a matter of national security,” said retired admiral and Maritime Administration’s chief Mark H. Buzby. The Merchant Marine fleet carries cargo during peacetime and becomes an auxiliary of the Defense Department during war-time to supply troops in areas of conflict. The Navy does not have the number of ships to handle a large-scale sea-lift supply mission on its own, and has had to rely on the Merchant Marine fleet. “If the fleet continues to lose ships, a lengthy, mass deployment on the scale of Desert Shield/Desert Storm (in 1991) could eventually require U.S. forces to rely on foreign-flagged ships for sustainment,” Air Force Gen. Darren W. McDew, head of the U.S. Transportation Command, told a Senate panel on April 10. Foreign-flagged crews should not be allowed near armaments and supplies the Pentagon uses in fighting wars, according to Buzby, because it is a national security issue. U.S. shipping companies say they can’t compete with subsidized foreign transport firms that allow skeleton crews and offer rock-bottom salaries. There are about 50,000 oceangoing trading vessels on the seas today. The U.S. is not among the top 20 maritime nations in world in terms of gross tonnage. (Source: McClatchy 05/15/18)