Merchant ship registries and markings

[Kret69]

I am building a Leopard-B (apocryphical) as primary merchant vessel. I want some kind of  backstory for it. Which brings me to registration number and painting, of course.

And here my question - were registration numbers' standards ever mentioned in CBT anywhere, or can I just invent something?

Who would hold the registry (ies) ? The House? Local power? ComStar?

Second question - would merchant units have House/ Periphery power emblems, or these emblems are reserved for armed forces (like modern aircraft insignias)?

[Luciora]

Not sure about registries, but I'd look at current day merchant and transport companies in regards to using emblems on units.  UPS, FedEx, Amazon, DHL, USPS, all have logos on their vehicles, so I don't see any reason for your dropship not to have one if the captain or company decide.

[Kret69]

That is a good point, I wasn't clear. I meant a specific faction logo (for example Hansa or Magistracy of Canopus) - would they be used on a merchant vessel?

[NeonKnight]

That is a good point, I wasn't clear. I meant a specific faction logo (for example Hansa or Magistracy of Canopus) - would they be used on a merchant vessel?

I would think - YES. As this is akin to all Vessels (on earth) need sail under a Nation's Flag, as they must be registered somewhere.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ship_registration

[Kret69]

Good point,thanks.

[Frabby]

Literal markings on the hull are pointless for DropShips given the distances involved. Spacecraft will (have to) use some sort of transponder to identify themselves.
As for registry, you don't get to fly a state flag unless you're a state vessel. Most DropShips are probably privately owned, and registered as unaffiliated free traders. Merc ships probably register as part of their respectiv unit.

ComStar will likely be involved in the registry process in some manner as they're the only accepted supranational agency

As for markings, I recall the House Mailai blue cross in a circle crest was on one of Renfred Thor's DropShips; and in Price of Glory Ricol's command DropShip flew the red chevron of House Ricol (no mention of Kurita symbols).

[glitterboy2098]

i would assume that hull markings would be used mainly on the ground at space ports, as a supplement to the transponder.
and I would expect that free traders and unaffiliated ships are still flagged out of somewhere, it'll just be somewhere with more open regulations. Mercenary hubs i suspect would be common for merc units, while merchants might well flag out of some near periphery world trade hub. honestly i suspect that Solaris VII might be a popular choice, since it is such a crossroads.

[Pat Payne]

I can't speak for the other houses, but Handbook: House Marik does mention that shipowners are encouraged to register in the FWL (mostly so that those ships can be commandeered at will during emergencies and are obliged to carry a portion of their capacity in official League cargo). Those that do have a major carrot to induce them -- the ship is considered a sui juris province, albeit one with no Parliamentary representation, and therefore the ship's owner/captain/whoever is in charge gets to literally set the law for the ship's decks and the ship is granted extraterritorial status in any other province (convenient when said ship owner wants to make a few C-Bills doing otherwise illicit gambling or running a speakeasy on an otherwise "dry" planet or something...)

I'm sure that license number would have to be tendered on request, as it is IIRC the ship's operating number.

[Hawkeye Jim]

Wouldn't most jumpships and dropships tend to have some kind of logo on them, usually the one for the company or unit they belong to? If they are operator owned, the owner could put whatever logo he wanted on it.

[Frabby]

Why would anyone seek to paint their JumpShip?
Come to think of it though, there are examples in canon where the jump sail (!) is emblazoned with a House crest. There's an image of a Magellan MkII with the Spirit Cat symbol on the jump sail; I recall one instance (a GDL novel?) where a jump sail had the Steiner fist on it, I think I also saw a Kurita dragon on a jump sail... somewhere, and in the apocryphal cartoon show you got at least the FedCom crest on the jump sail.
It would seem that emblazoning jump sails absolutely is a thing.

As for DropShips, they're not delivery trucks but we positively know that they can be painted, and frequently are. I guess it's entirely possible that large corporations including especially merc units would put their logos on the hull. I gave examples above. There are others. One merc unit had their Union canonically painted as a flaming skull.

Edit: Typos

[Kret69]

The painting and the registration number issue are not entirely the same. I want to paint (decal) this number on a model for technical reasons (just like I have my lance of Catapults done with tactical numbers so I know which one is which) - but I understand that painting a spaceship, both never entering atmosphere and frequently doing so, may be the waste of paint and money.

I am more interested in figuring out how should one introduce oneself when trying to:
- leave the planet
- encounter any local forces' patrols
- dock to the Jumpship (and pay for the passage?)
- encounter patrols in foreign space and identify oneself as not a pirate

What number and what authority should one refer to?

[AlphaMirage]

The painting and the registration number issue are not entirely the same. I want to paint (decal) this number on a model for technical reasons (just like I have my lance of Catapults done with tactical numbers so I know which one is which) - but I understand that painting a spaceship, both never entering atmosphere and frequently doing so, may be the waste of paint and money.

I am more interested in figuring out how should one introduce oneself when trying to:
- leave the planet
- encounter any local forces' patrols
- dock to the Jumpship (and pay for the passage?)
- encounter patrols in foreign space and identify oneself as not a pirate

What number and what authority should one refer to?

Whether to paint or not depends, the paint could provide some protection against heat.

For the other things there would have to be some kind of transponder code that corresponds to wherever the ship is registered to.  COMSTAR likely keeps all the codes updated when it refreshes the First Circuit and defines the basics of interstellar regulations particularly interstellar banking due to their large merchant fleet and control over the HPG system. The Succession States and COMSTAR probably have closed ship registries to protect their interests while the Periphery might have open registries (like the Caribbean) allowing a free trader to change its flag/code and trade between hostile powers and evade local taxes if it wants. This is also something that the MRB and its successor the MRBC probably keeps in your merc unit file to determine who might be at fault should there be 'difficulty.'

So there is some kind of VIN that you transmit to any forces upon request and likely your insurance and banking information if you are landing at a major starport. For backwater planets they probably don't care especially if they don't have an HPG on world and rely on jumpships for data transfer.