This Research Note summarizes the findings of a chapter on floating armouries in the Small Arms Survey 2015: Weapons and the World. It presents basic information on the number of floating armouries operating in the HRA, their use, the number of arms they store, and an overview of some of the nascent—and potential—approaches to regulating floating armouries to ensure safe and secure practices.

The private security industry has come under considerable international scrutiny due to the highly publicized role it has played in Afghanistan and Iraq (2011). Attention has mostly focused on questions concerning governmental oversight and these companies’ accountability. Research Note 4: Private Security Companies’ Firearms Stockpiles —based on a forthcoming chapter from the Small Arms Survey 2011 yearbook—examines private security company (PSC) firearm holdings: their scale and variation across settings.