Why U.S. ships keep larger crews

Are high U.S. Navy manning levels a technical necessity or an avoidable institutional cost?

Often an institutional choice: even automated systems may retain large authorized teams, increasing lifetime personnel cost.

The U.S. Navy bought a European-style automated launch-and-recovery system that other navies would operate with one sailor, yet retained a much larger team because the billets were already authorized. Keeping some additional hands nearby can provide resilience when automation fails, but eight sailors waiting beside an automatic system suggests that old crewing habits survived the technical change. European navies often undercrew ships, so a useful middle ground lies between the two practices. Manning levels reflect institutional habits as well as the machinery aboard ship.