The Suez Great Bitter Lake saga

Wars in the Middle East more than 50 years ago led to a Suez Canal blockage that trapped 15 ships for eight years. Crews coped by creating social and sporting events but the state-of-the-art cargo ships fared badly.

The recent blocking of the Suez Canal by the container ship Ever Given lasted just six days although it caused longer-term havoc to shipping schedules and global logistics.

However, 54 years ago a situation in the Canal resulted in 14 ships being stuck for eight years in the Great Bitter Lake, with one vessel stuck in Lake Timsah.

The cause was the Six Day War between Israel and Jordan, Syria, and Egypt which began on 5 June 1967 and lasted until 10 June. Although short lived, one result was the blocking of the Suez Canal by Egypt which sank block ships and laid mines at both ends. A northbound convoy of 15 ships passing through the Canal was trapped in the middle.

The birth of the ‘Yellow Fleet’

At first it was thought the delay would be short lived, but weeks turned into months. Winds constantly blew desert sand over the vessels and, seen from a distance, the entire fleet had a yellowish appearance, hence its nickname ‘The Yellow Fleet’.

Joining together

In October 1967, and with no end to the blockage in sight, a meeting of the officers and crews of the 14 vessels convened aboard the Melampus to establish the Great Bitter Lake Association for mutual support.

Crews would meet regularly on board the ships and organise social events. They founded the Great Bitter Lake Yacht Club and held the Bitter Lake Olympic Games in October 1968 to coincide with the Olympic Games in Mexico City. Crews from eight nations competed in 14 disciplines, including fishing, sailing, acrobatics, and soccer, with the winners awarded hand-crafted medals.

Lifeboats equipped with sailing gear were raced, and soccer played on Port Invercargill, while church services were held on the Nordwind. Movies were shown on the Vasil Levsky, and swimming took place in the Killara’s pool.

The Port Invercargill (Credit: Iain G B Lovie)

A postal system was created using hand-designed stamps which were recognised by the Egyptian postal authority for use worldwide. In time, the stamps became sought after collectors’ items.

Winding down the crews

Over the following months relief crews were posted to the ships on a regular basis but by 1969, and with no improvement in the situation, the decision was taken by the owners to gradually reduce manning levels.

Eventually the ships were tied together into groups of four or five to further reduce crew numbers, with those left on board responsible for safety and maintenance.

Time stood still for the Yellow Fleet until the October 1973 ‘Yom Kippur’ Arab-Israeli War. A coalition of Arab states, led by Egypt and Syria attacked Israel with the aim of seizing a foothold on the east bank of the Suez Canal and negotiate the return of the rest of Sinai. The Great Bitter Lake ships were caught in the crossfire with the African Glen sunk by the Israeli air force when it was being used by Egyptian forces as an observation post.

The Agapenor (Credit: Malcolm Cranfield/ John D. Hill)

Freedom at long last

After the war, an international agreement was reached in October 1973 to clear all the obstructions and re-open the Canal. In 1974 a US-led operation swept the mines, provided training and advisory assistance for land and water explosive ordnance clearance for Egyptian forces, and removed the wrecks sunk as block ships.                                    

By July 1975 the Canal was finally cleared of all obstructions and re-opened, but just two of the Great Bitter Lake vessels – the Nordwind and Münsterland – were able to proceed under their own power and return to Germany.

The rest had to be towed out and were in such poor condition, especially those with perishable cargoes, that they were sold off and traded only briefly before being scrapped over the next few years.

By the time they left the Canal after eight long years, the container revolution had taken place and from being state-of-the-art cargo ships in 1967, the Yellow Fleet had become obsolete.

Footnotes:

* Was named Sindh when war began

** Sunk in 1973 during the ‘Yom Kippur’ War

*** Trapped in Lake Timsah

John Barnes is a journalist and writer.