In a chartering diagram, the entity labeled A represents which party?

• A. Head Owner
• B. Disponent Owner
• C. Charterer
• D. Ship Operator

Answer: (A)

In chartering diagrams the person who truly owns the vessel sits at the top—the head owner. This party holds the legal title to the ship and is the one who contracts out the vessel’s use through charter arrangements. The disponent owner, shown below, is the entity that actually operates or manages the ship under a charter from the head owner. The charterer is the party that hires the ship to carry cargo, and the ship operator handles day-to-day sailing and crewing, which may be the same as the disponent owner in some cases but is not the owner. So the topmost label represents the Head Owner.