Flag of convenience (FOC) is a business practice whereby a ship's owners register a merchant ship in a ship register of a country other than that of the ship's owners, and the ship flies the civil ensign of that country, called the flag state. The term is often used pejoratively, and although common, the practice is sometimes regarded as contentious.
Each merchant ship is required by international law to be registered in a registry created by a country, and a ship is subject to the laws of that country, which are used also if the ship is involved in a case under admiralty law. A ship's owners may elect to register a ship in a foreign country so as to avoid the regulations of the owners' country, which may, for example, have stricter safety standards. They may also select a jurisdiction to reduce operating costs, avoiding higher taxes in the owners' country and bypassing laws that protect the wages and working conditions of mariners. The term "flag of convenience" has been used since the 1950s. A registry which does not have a nationality or residency requirement for ship registration is often described as an open registry. Panama, for example, offers advantages such as easier registration (often online), the ability to employ cheaper foreign labour, and an exemption on income taxes. (Full article...)
Image 10Passengers waiting to board a tube train on the London Underground in the early 1900s (sketch by unknown artist)
Image 11A prototype of a Ganz AC electric locomotive in Valtellina, Italy, 1901 (from Rail transport)
Image 12Bardon Hill box in England (seen here in 2009) is a Midland Railway box dating from 1899, although the original mechanical lever frame has been replaced by electrical switches. (from Rail transport)
Image 28Modes of road transport in Dublin, 1929 (from Road transport)
Image 29The Great North Road near High gate on the approach to London before turnpiking. The highway was deeply rutted and spread onto adjoining land. (from Road transport)
Image 35San Diego Trolley over Interstate 8 (from Road transport)
Image 36The Beijing Subway is one of the world's largest and busiest rapid transit networks. (from Transport)
Image 370-Series Shinkansen, introduced in 1964, triggered the intercity train travel boom. (from Rail transport)
Image 38A replica of a "Little Eaton Tramway" wagon; the tracks are plateways. (from Rail transport)
Image 39According to Eurostat and the European Railway Agency, the fatality risk for passengers and occupants on European railways is 28 times lower when compared with car usage (based on data by EU-27 member nations, 2008–2010). (from Rail transport)
Image 40The Lockheed SR-71 remains unsurpassed in many areas of performance. (from Aviation)
Image 50Tunnels, such as the Tampere Tunnel, allow traffic to pass underground or through rock formations. (from Transport)
Image 51A 16th-century minecart, an early example of unpowered rail transport (from Rail transport)
Image 52A cast iron fishbelly edge rail manufactured by Outram at the Butterley Company for the Cromford and High Peak Railway in 1831; these are smooth edge rails for wheels with flanges. (from Rail transport)
Image 53European rail subsidies in euros per passenger-km for 2008 (from Rail transport)
Image 65German soldiers in a railway car on the way to the front in August 1914. The message on the car reads Von München über Metz nach Paris ("From Munich via Metz to Paris"). (from Rail transport)
Image 66An ambulance from World War I (from Transport)
... that a section of Mississippi Highway 489 was designated as the Jason Boyd Memorial Highway to commemorate the MDOT superintendent who was killed while removing debris from the road?
... that when Charles P. Gross became the chairman of the New York City Board of Transportation, the mayor told him that "if you think war is Hell, then you have something waiting for you on this job"?
.jpg)
_landing_at_London_Gatwick_Airport.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
