A fishing fleet is an aggregate of commercial

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment (Freshwater ecosystem, freshwater or Marine ecosystem, marine), but may also be caught from Fish stocking, stocked Body of water, ...

vessels. The term may be used of all vessels operating out of a particular port, all vessels engaged in a particular type of fishing (as in the "tuna fishing fleet"), or all fishing vessels of a country or region. Although fishing vessels are not formally organized as if they were a

naval fleet A fleet or naval fleet is a large formation of warships – the largest formation in any navy – controlled by one leader. A fleet at sea is the direct equivalent of an army on land. Purpose In the modern sense, fleets are usually, but no ...

, very often the constraints of time and weather are such that they must all leave or return together, thus creating at least the appearance of an organized body (some countries, such as the former

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

, did however organise their fishing fleets partially along naval lines and used the ships to also gather naval intelligence). Fishermen operating a particular type of vessel or in a particular port often belong to a local association which disseminates information and may be used to coordinate activities, such as how best to prevent

overfishing Overfishing is the removal of a species of fish (i.e. fishing) from a body of water at a rate greater than that the species can replenish its population naturally (i.e. the overexploitation of the fishery's existing Fish stocks, fish stock), resu ...

in particular areas.

World fishing fleet

In 2002 the world fishing fleet numbered about four million vessels. About one-third were decked. The remaining undecked boats were generally less than 10 metres long, and 65 percent were not fitted with mechanical propulsion systems. The

FAO The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations; . (FAO) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations that leads international efforts to defeat hunger and improve nutrition ...

estimates that Asia accounts for over 80 percent of them. The average size of decked vessels is about 20 gross tons (10–15 metres). Only one percent of the world fishing fleet is larger than 100 gross tons (longer than 24 metres). China has half (25,600) of these larger vessels. There is no international instrument in force concerning the safety of fishing vessels. International conventions and agreements awaiting ratification which concern safety at sea are almost exclusively aimed at vessels 24 metres in length and over, and therefore do not apply to artisan vessels in developing countries. Safety regulations for all fishing vessels are left almost entirely to national discretion.

Other uses

The fishing fleet was an ironic reference to the shipping of unmarried young women from the UK to India during the middle and latter years of the Raj, for the purposes of becoming married to colonial administrators, officers and plantation supervisors.,

Notes

References

: CWP Handbook of Fishery Statistical Standards
Section L: Fishery Fleet

FAO: Fishing vessels
{{fisheries and fishing