班轮运输又称为公共运输,是国际海上货物运输中一种非常重要的方式。具体是指由承运人提供船舶,在预先公告的航线上航行,定期停靠规定的港口,并按照规定的费率为公众提供运输服务。此种运输方式中的承运人多为班轮公司,班轮公司又组成带有垄断性质的班轮公会,其交易地位明显强于托运人。因此,为了保护托运人权益,法律会对承运人最低限度的义务作出规定,主要表现在对承运人适航的义务和管货的义务等方面。1924年的海牙规则(全称为《统一提单若干法律规则的国际公约》)首次以国际公约的形式明确规定了船舶适航的义务和管货的义 Liner transport, also known as public transport, is a very important way in the international carriage of goods by sea. Specifically, the ship provided by the carrier sails on the pre-announced route and regularly stops at the designated port and provides the public with transportation services at the prescribed rates. Most of the carriers in this mode of transport are liner companies, which in turn form a monopoly liner convention, whose transaction status is obviously stronger than that of shippers. Therefore, in order to protect the rights and interests of shippers, the law stipulates the carrier’s minimum obligations, mainly in terms of airworthiness of the carrier and the obligation of possession. The Hague Rules of 1924 (all called the “International Conventions for the Unification of Certain Legal Rules of Bills of Lading”), for the first time, explicitly stipulated the obligation of airworthiness of ships and the meaning of goods in custody in the form of international conventions