A holistic socio-technical approach is provided to investigate and present an overview of the current state-of-the-art research, focusing on the human perspective in maritime cyber resilience for UARSVO, to provide unique, holistic, and human-centred operational strategies for maritime cyber resilience.
The rapid emergence of Maritime Autonomous Surface Ships (MASS) has made the governance of artificial intelligence systems a question of immediate regulatory urgency. The European Union's Artificial Intelligence Act (2024) and the Republic of Korea's AI Framework Act (2025) are the first two horizontal, binding, risk‐tiered AI statutes in force, yet neither provides operationally adequate criteria for classifying AI systems aboard autonomous vessels. Maritime transport sits outside the EU Act's Annex III, and Korea's Act defers the operative classification to guidelines whose maritime treatment remains incomplete. This paper proposes five interrelated criteria for classifying autonomous shipping AI as high‐impact—functional centrality to navigation and safety, reliability under maritime stress, systemic harm potential upon malfunction, dependence on real‐time data integrity, and structural absence of human override—grounded in the operational realities of autonomous vessels and the legal obligations both frameworks activate once the threshold is crossed. Because roughly four‐fifths of world trade by volume moves by sea through a small number of congested chokepoints, accurate classification is also a question of supply chain resilience, with dimensions extending beyond technical risk to seafarer welfare, marine‐environmental integrity, and the democratic legitimacy of a transition whose pace has outrun the governance architecture intended to steer it.
Sihyun Kim, Tae Jung Park· Transportation journal· 1 citation
Maritime autonomous surface ships (MASSs) are reshaping the organization of navigation, ship operation, remote control and maritime supervision. However, the transition from crewed navigation to autonomy also changes the structure of safety risk. Traditional ship risk assessment approaches rely heavily on historical accident records and crew-centered operational assumptions, whereas MASS operations involve coupled risks arising from perception systems, autonomous decision-making, communication links, cybersecurity, remote control centers, environmental uncertainty and management readiness. To address the scarcity of operational accident data and the need for a structured safety evaluation method, this paper develops a Formal Safety Assessment (FSA)-based risk evaluation framework for MASS operations. A hierarchical indicator system is established from five dimensions: ship machinery, human factors, environmental factors, information technology and management. A frequency-severity risk criterion is then constructed by defining the Frequency Index (FI), Severity Index (SI) and Risk Index (RI), and by introducing the ALARP principle to classify unacceptable, tolerable and broadly acceptable risk regions. On this basis, an integrated fuzzy analytic hierarchy process is proposed to determine factor weights, transform expert judgements into membership degrees, and calculate comprehensive risk scores. A case study using 50 expert questionnaires shows that the overall risk score of MASS operation is 5.64, located in the ALARP region. Among the first-level indicators, environmental factors, information technology factors and ship machinery factors present relatively high risk levels, with scores of 6.82, 6.60 and 6.25, respectively. At the secondary-indicator level, intelligent navigation system, weather conditions, hydrometeorological conditions, communication capability, equipment and systems, navigation decision-making, and environmental perception are identified as high-intensity risk indicators. Further contribution decomposition reveals that environmental perception, routine ship management, navigation decision-making, and communication capability contribute most substantially to the overall risk profile due to their higher systemic importance. The proposed framework provides an interpretable approach for MASS safety assessment and risk-control prioritization under limited operational data availability.
Fires and oil spills at sea remain among the most destructive maritime incidents, leading to severe human, environmental, and economic losses. This paper explores the transformative role of unmanned technologies in enhancing maritime disaster response and prevention. It focuses on three key systems: unmanned aerial vehicles (RPASs), Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (USVs), and remotely operated underwater vehicles (ROVs). These platforms demonstrate growing effectiveness in search-and-rescue operations, firefighting, and oil spill mitigation by providing enhanced situational awareness, minimising human exposure to hazardous conditions, and improving overall operational efficiency. The study reviews selected case studies and international regulatory frameworks to identify best practices and current technological limitations. Furthermore, it proposes potential pathways for integrating autonomous and remotely operated systems into comprehensive maritime security and emergency management structures. The findings suggest that unmanned systems are a critical component of next-generation maritime safety strategies, offering scalable, adaptive, and risk-reducing solutions to address the increasing frequency and scale of marine fires and pollution events.
Grzegorz Rutkowski, Marcin Stateczny· Zeszyty Naukowe SGSP· 0 citations
This study aims to analyze human capital resilience in the maritime shipping industry and reconstruct maritime human resource management (HRM) strategies capable of responding to digitalization, decarbonization, automation, and changing seafarer competencies. The research problem arises from the gap between the transformation demands of the shipping industry and the readiness, adaptability, and professional resilience of seafarers in responding to technological and regulatory changes. A qualitative exploratory approach was employed. Data were collected through in-depth interviews with 30 informants, comprising seafarers, ship officers, shipping company managers, maritime instructors, and academics, complemented by observations and document analysis. Data were analyzed thematically through data reduction, coding, categorization, interpretation, and conclusion drawing. The findings indicate that 83.3% of informants perceived digitalization as having significantly changed seafarers’ work patterns and competency requirements, while 76.7% identified digital competency gaps as a major challenge. Furthermore, 73.3% of informants considered competencies related to decarbonization and low-carbon energy technologies to remain insufficiently developed, while 70.0% emphasized the need to strengthen competencies in automation systems and data-driven technologies. The qualitative analysis identified four key dimensions of human capital resilience: digital adaptability, green competence, automation readiness, and continuous learning. These dimensions provide the foundation for reconstructing maritime HRM strategies based on reskilling, upskilling, continuous learning, and stronger industry–education collaboration. The study concludes that human capital resilience is a strategic determinant of seafarers’ employability, adaptability, and the sustainable competitiveness of the maritime shipping industry amid ongoing maritime transformation.
As the maritime industry becomes increasingly digitised, shipboard navigation systems, including the Automatic Identification System (AIS), Global Positioning System (GPS), Radio Detection and Ranging (RADAR), and Electronic Chart Display and Information System (ECDIS), have emerged as critical vulnerabilities within the global supply chain. This paper evaluates the cybersecurity readiness of the maritime sector, highlighting the implications for African ocean governance and the regional blue economy. Adopting a qualitative doctrinal and comparative research methodology, the study analyses existing international legal instruments and South African domestic frameworks, such as the Cybercrimes Act 19 of 2020, to benchmark maritime standards against the robust regulatory regimes of the banking sector. The findings reveal significant gaps in maritime preparedness, characterised by a lack of harmonised standards and insufficient data-sharing protocols. The research argues that for African maritime nations to safeguard their waters and trade interests, a proactive regulatory shift is required, one that aligns with the 2050 Africa’s Integrated Maritime Strategy (2050 AIMS). By adapting the successes of the financial sector’s security frameworks, the maritime industry can strengthen its legal and technical resilience against evolving cyber threats.
