The first meeting of the newly formed Cruise Ship Safety Forum (CSSF) took place in London a few weeks ago under the coordination of Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA). The Forum is a consortium of cruise ship operators, ship yards, classification societies and CLIA to advance cruise ship safety in a coordinated and focused manner.

The Forum's purpose is threefold:

• To develop strategic direction for advancing cruise ship safety issues in their broadest sense;
• To proactively address issues as they relate to the future of the industry, as they pertain to the design and construction of new passenger ships and modification of existing cruise ships; and
• To provide a forum to consider regulatory and other safety initiatives and develop a coordinated response to external bodies such as the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

As part of its initial work, CSSF will be focusing on an initiative of the IMO known as "safe return to port" regarding the design and operation of a passenger ship to allow it to safely return to port in the event of a major accident or incident. The Forum's activities will be guided by a steering committee comprised of senior executives from the three major cruise lines: Carnival Corporation, Royal Caribbean Cruises and Norwegian Cruise Line; shipyards: Aker Yards, Meyer Werft and Fincantieri; and classification societies: DNV, Lloyd's Register and RINA; and CLIA.