Because of incorrect information provided to The Virginian-Pilot and Daily Press, an opinion column on Page 15 of Sunday’s News section (“American security needs domestic commercial shipbuilding“) used an outdated figure when describing the number of flagged merchant marine vessels operated by the United States. The most recent figure is 185. It incorrectly stated the number of commercial ships produced annually by the United States in 1975; shipyards produced about 20 ships per year. And the federal government subsidizes the operation of Chinese-made oil tankers supplying U.S. Navy vessels, but does not directly purchase them.
Originally Published:
