A person (very often a surveyor with deck officer experience) who is employed by charterers or cargo owners to oversee the loading, carriage and/or discharge of goods or some operation on board a ship, usually where there is some complexity in the nature of the cargo or operation.
A supercargo will often sail on board the ship under a charter party term. As charterers’ representative he has considerable importance, although he has no right to interfere with decisions made by the master in the interests of safety. (See questions on Master’s Discretion in Section H. )
