A group of fifteen ships called the Yellow Fleet was trapped in what part of the world from 1967 to 1975, a fall-out of a noted war?
"For the ""Münsterland"" this was the end of a voyage to Australia which had lasted eight years, three months and five days. In recent years, there has been renewed interest in this unusual story. Two books have appeared that chronicle the 8-year sojourn of the ships in the Great Bitter Lake, ""Acht Jahre gefangen im Großen Bittersee"" by Hans Jürgen Witthöft, in German (2015); and ""Stranded in the Six-Day War"" by Cath Senker, in English (2017). Yellow Fleet The Yellow Fleet was the name given to a group of fifteen ships trapped in the Suez Canal (in the Great Bitter"
"objected to the closing of the Straits of Tiran to Israeli shipping. The canal had been closed to Israeli shipping since 1949, except for a short period in 1951–1952. After the 1967 Six-Day War, Israeli forces occupied the Sinai peninsula, including the entire east bank of the Suez Canal. Unwilling to allow the Israelis to use the canal, Egypt immediately imposed a blockade which closed the canal to all shipping. 15 cargo ships, known as the ""Yellow Fleet"", were trapped in the canal, and would remain there until 1975. In 1973, during the Yom Kippur War, the canal was the"
"restored its fleet with new ships. After the Second War it regained tonnage rapidly by buying six Victory ships from the United States Maritime Commission in 1946 and eight """"Sam-"""" ships from the Ministry of War Transport in 1947. Two Blue Funnel ships, MS ""Agapenor"" and MS ""Melampus"" were trapped by the Six-Day War of 1967 and became part of the Yellow Fleet in the Great Bitter Lake, remaining there until 1975. From 1947 to 1970, as Britain's empire began to shrink, so did its trade. Meanwhile, companies from other parts of the world began to operate more competitively. Cabotage"
"greater roles in ""keeping the peace"". During ""Jupiter's"" service in the Far Pacific, the 7th Fleet averted major crises in Formosa, Indonesia, and Laos; and played an important part in the Vietnam struggle. She continued to carry vital supplies to the Far East until struck from the Navy List on 1 August 1965. ""Jupiter"" was then transferred to the Maritime Administration and joined the National Defense Reserve Fleet at Olympia, Washington, where she remained. She was struck from the Naval Register, 1 August 1965. Final disposition: sold for scrapping in March 1971. ""Jupiter"" received six battle stars for World War"
"seadrome in Da Nang Bay and conducted seaplane patrols in support of Operation Flaming Dart, the bombing of North Vietnamese army camps. Operating primarily from Yankee Station off the north coast of Vietnam and the aptly-named Dixie Station off the south coast of Vietnam in the South China Sea,Seventh Fleet was organized into a series of task forces, often known by the acronym CTF (Commander Task Force): In 1975, ships and aircraft of the Fleet evacuated thousands of U.S. citizens and refugees from South Vietnam and Cambodia as those countries fell to opposing forces. Since the end of the Vietnam"
"had its heyday around the protests of 1968, gradually disappearing by the first years of the 1970s. Extremely little is known about the Golden Fleet, yet still it became notorious, this to such an extent that it has been labelled ""legendary"". Nothing is known about its establishment, composition, and disestablishment. The name was most likely taken from an art exhibit in Denmark by the Situationist Jeppesen Victor Martin, which consisted of geopolitical paintings featuring coastlines, strategic arrows and toy battleships sprayed over with metallic paint. The group was centered in the capital Stockholm, although some members appear to have been"
"this resulted in the Six-Day War in June 1967. The National Security Agency (NSA) decided to deploy a SIGINT collection ship to the area to monitor the situation. Most of the technical research ships were too far away: and were in Southeast Asia, and were in South America, and was off Cuba. Choice of a ship for the operation narrowed between ""Private Jose F. Valdez"", then headed from the eastern Mediterranean to Gibraltar, and in port at Abidjan, Ivory Coast. The NSA selected ""Liberty"" because she had superior cruising speed (18 knots vs. 8 knots for ""Private Jose F. Valdez""),"
"three to five times the number of rotationally-based ships in the U.S. to equal the same presence and crisis response capability as these 18 forward deployed ships. On any given day, about 50% of Seventh Fleet forces are deployed at sea throughout the area of responsibility. Following the end of the Cold War, the two major military scenarios in which the Seventh Fleet would be used would be in case of conflict in Korea or a conflict between People's Republic of China and Taiwan (Republic of China) in the Taiwan Strait. It was reported on 10 May 2012 that would"
"number of wounded soldiers who were accommodated in Malta. In 1919 British troops fired on a rally protesting against new taxes, killing four Maltese men. The event, known as Sette Giugno (Italian for ""7 June""), is commemorated every year and is one of five National Days. Before the Second World War, Valletta was the location of the Royal Navy's Mediterranean Fleet's headquarters. However, despite Winston Churchill's objections, the command was moved to Alexandria, Egypt, in April 1937 out of fear that it was too susceptible to air attacks from Europe. During the Second World War, Malta played an important role"
"the largest naval battle in history. After the end of the war, the 7th Fleet moved its headquarters to Qingdao, China. As laid out in Operation Plan 13–45 of 26 August 1945, Kinkaid established five major task forces to manage operations in the Western Pacific: Task Force 71, the North China Force with 75 ships; Task Force 72, the Fast Carrier Force, directed to provide air cover to the Marines going ashore and discourage with dramatic aerial flyovers any Communist forces that might oppose the operation; Task Force 73, the Yangtze Patrol Force with another 75 combatants; Task Force 74,"
"in the region on two occasions, once when Khmer Rouge forces seized an American ship in international waters and again when American military officers were killed in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea. The first crisis was the Mayaguez incident. In May 1975, shortly after the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge conquest of Cambodia, Cambodians seized the American merchant ship ""Mayaguez"" in international waters. Ford dispatched Marines to rescue the crew, but the Marines landed on the wrong island and met unexpectedly stiff resistance just as, unknown to the U.S., the ""Mayaguez"" sailors were being"
"of these ships sailed into combat zones under fire. In fact, the SS Mayaguez incident involved the capture of mariners from the American merchant ship SS Mayaguez. The crisis began on May 12, 1975, when Khmer Rouge naval forces operating former U.S. Navy ""Swift Boats"" seized the American container ship SS ""Mayagüez"" in recognized international sea lanes claimed as territorial waters by Cambodia and removed its crew for questioning. Surveillance by P-3 Orion aircraft indicated that the ship was then moved to and anchored at Koh Tang, an island approximately 50 miles off the southern coast of Cambodia near that"
"Seventh Fleet control to demonstrate U.S. support for Taiwan during the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis. The ""Nimitz"" battle group (CCDG 5?) made a high speed transit from the Persian Gulf, while Carrier Group Five, led by ""Independence"", sortied from its Japanese homeports. Of the 50–60 ships typically assigned to Seventh Fleet, 18 operate from U.S. facilities in Japan and Guam. These forward-deployed units represent the heart of Seventh Fleet, and the centerpieces of American forward presence in Asia. They are 17 steaming days closer to locations in Asia than their counterparts based in the continental United States. It would take"
"Seventh Fleet. Ships from nine nations comprised the West Coast Blockade Group (Task Group 95.1), the East Coast Blockade Group (Task Group 95.2), the Escort Group (Task Group 95.5), the Minesweeping Group (Task Group 95.6), and the Republic of Korea Navy (Task Group 95.7). In addition to interdicting Korean waters against hostile and unauthorized shipping, Task Force 95 conducted shore bombardment and naval airstrikes on both coasts and maintained a continuous blockade of the North Korean port of Wonsan, the longest naval blockade of modern times. Gingrich stressed efficient use of warfighting resources. When he took over Task Force 95,"
"the Yellow Sea. During the Battle of Weihaiwei, ""Yaeyama"" covered Japanese landing operations on 18 January 1895 (along with and ) and shelled Chinese forts. Subsequently, ""Yaeyama"" took part in the invasion of Taiwan, and saw action on 13 October 1895 at the bombardment of the Chinese coastal forts at Takow (Kaohsiung) and the Invasion of the Pescadores. While operating in support of the invasion of Taiwan, ""Yaeyama"" precipitated a diplomatic incident with the United Kingdom when her captain intercepted the British-flagged merchant ship SS ""Thales"" in international waters on the morning of 21 October 1895. ""Thales"" had departed Taiwan"
"was inevitable. However, the North Korean invasion of South Korea, in the context of the Cold War, meant U.S. President Truman intervened again and dispatched the Seventh Fleet to ""neutralize"" the Formosa (Taiwan) Strait. During the war, over an estimate number of 21,800 Chinese troops were taken prisoner by the Allies. After the war, they were given a chance to return to the People's Republic of China or to go to the Republic of China (Taiwan). Over two thirds of the entire group chose to go to Taiwan for the fears of government reprisal, consequently defecting to the Army of"
"Fleet deployment, in the Western Pacific, took place between July 1968 and February 1969. In this, and her next two Far Eastern tours in 1970 and 1971–72, she engaged in Vietnam War operations and visited southern Pacific nations. Further ""WestPac"" cruises took place in 1973, 1974–75, 1976–77 and 1978–1979. The last deployment also took her into the Indian Ocean, an area of increasing interest to the U.S. Navy as the Persian Gulf region became unstable. In 1981 and again in 1982, ""Decatur"" steamed across the Pacific for more duty with the Seventh Fleet and, in 1983, in the Persian Gulf."
"with the 6th Fleet again in 1973, Truckee provided support during yet another Middle East crisis, the Yom Kippur War. After an emergency sortie from Palma de Mallorca on 7 October occasioned by the heaviest Arab-Israeli fighting since 1967, ""Truckee"" remained in the eastern Mediterranean until ordered to standdown from alert posture on 18 November 1973. During this cruise, the tanker pumped 95 million litres (25 mio. US gal) of fuel to NATO and United States ships and steamed 40,000 km (25,000 mi). In 1974, ""Truckee"" remained on the east coast operating out of Norfolk. She also underwent an extended"
"and 1995. Northern Fleet The Northern Fleet (, ""Severnyy Flot"") is the fleet of the Russian Navy in the Arctic Ocean. Established in 1933 by the Soviet Union as the Northern Flotilla, the fleet is considered to indirectly descend from the Arctic Sea Flotilla established in 1916 by the Russian Empire to protect the White Sea during World War I. It was developed into a full fleet of the Soviet Navy in the 1930s, and after being awarded the Order of the Red Banner in 1965, it was officially known as the Red Banner Northern Fleet until 1991. During the"
"the U.S. and the new government but Mao was unwilling. On June 27, 1950, after the outbreak of fighting in Korea, Truman ordered the U.S. Navy's Seventh Fleet into the Taiwan Strait to prevent further conflict between the communist government on the China mainland and the Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan. Truman usually worked well with his top staff--the exceptions were Israel in 1948 and Spain 1945-50. Truman was a very strong opponent of Francisco Franco, the right-wing dictator of Spain. He withdrew the American ambassador (but diplomatic relations were not formally broken), kept Spain out of the UN,"
"by a rear admiral. These seven fleets are further grouped under Fleet Forces Command (the former Atlantic Fleet), Pacific Fleet, Naval Forces Europe-Africa, and Naval Forces Central Command, whose commander also doubles as Commander Fifth Fleet; the first three commands being led by four-star admirals. The United States First Fleet existed after the Second World War from 1947, but it was redesignated the Third Fleet in early 1973. The United States Second Fleet was deactivated in September of 2011, but reestablished in August of 2018 amid heightened tensions with Russia. It is headquartered in Norfolk, Virginia, with responsibility over the"
"Seventh Fleet units operating off the coast of Vietnam to support the Vietnam War. Her triennial overhaul periods excepted, ""Regulus"", equipped in 1965 with a helicopter deck for vertical replenishment, continued to carry provisions to the units of the United States Pacific Fleet until the night of 16–17 August 1971. While riding out typhoon Rose at Hong Kong, ""Regulus"" grounded on Kau I Chau Island on 17 August 1971, ripping open her hull. After three weeks of attempting to refloat ""Regulus"", it was finally decided that the damage she had incurred was too severe to warrant salvage. The ship was"
"Newport, Rhode Island, and Norfolk, Virginia, making 18 deployments with the Sixth Fleet including an extended deployment from 1972–1975 where she was homeported near Athens, Greece. Her missions included aiding earthquake victims in Volos Greece in 1955; supporting Eastern Mediterranean US coastal operations during the 1956 War between Israel and Egypt, and during the Lebanese crisis in 1958; participation in the Cuban Quarantine-Blockade in 1962; the pursuit of the hijacked Venezuelan freighter SS ""Anzoategui"" in 1963; coastal operations off the Dominican Republic and evacuation of American citizens during that county's revolution in 1965; participation in the search for the USS"
"United States Seventh Fleet, along with sister ships and . During 1990 and 1991, she served during Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, later known as the Persian Gulf War. ""San Jose"" was decommissioned and transferred to Military Sealift Command on 2 November 1993. She was deployed to East Timor as part of the Australian-led INTERFET peacekeeping taskforce from 25 to 31 October 1999. In 2005, ""San Jose"" provided logistics support to hospital ship in efforts to provide assistance to victims of the December 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia. ""San Jose"" most recently provided logistics support to Navy ships in"
"the United States Sixth Fleet during the Cold war. Today, the Mediterranean Sea is the southern border of the European Union and represents one of the largest area by Trade in the World. The Maltese prime minister described the Mediterranean sea as a ""cemetery"" due to the large amounts of migrants who drown there. Following the 2013 Lampedusa migrant shipwreck, the Italian government, has decided to strengthen the national system for the patrolling of the Mediterranean Sea by authorizing Operation Mare Nostrum, a military and humanitarian operation in order to rescue the migrants and arrest the traffickers of immigrants. History"
"the area focused around the Tsingtao area of the Yellow Sea. The ship was instructed not to approach any Chinese-Communist-held territory, including offshore islands closer than 10 miles. These patrols were a response to Chinese Communist’s unexpected re-definition of their territorial waters to include all waters shoreward from lines drawn tangentially to, and between, twelve mile circles drawn around their offshore islands. Such a declaration represented a huge expansion of their claims. This inhibited the lawful navigation of international waters and increased the likelihood and frequency of formal diplomatic ""serious warnings"" issued by Beijing when any Seventh Fleet units navigated"
"to Vladivostok. The Japanese fleet intercepted the Russian ships at 12:55 in what became the Battle of the Yellow Sea. ""Poltava"" was sixth in the column of Russian ships when the Japanese engaged them, and from her position started to bombard at around 14:45. The battleship , the Japanese flagship, then fired several shots that hit ""Poltava"", causing the Russian squadron to drop back to support her. The Russians scored several hits on ""Mikasa"", including two by ""Poltava"". She also scored one hit on the armored cruiser . Owing to the damage ""Mikasa"" had sustained, the Japanese fleet broke off"
"event of an attack by the PRC. The situation quickly changed after the onset of the Korean War in June 1950. This led to changing political climate in the US, and President Truman ordered the United States Seventh Fleet to sail to the Taiwan Strait as part of the containment policy against potential Communist advance. In June 1949 the ROC declared a ""closure"" of all mainland China ports and its navy attempted to intercept all foreign ships. The closure was from a point north of the mouth of Min River in Fujian to the mouth of the Liao River in"
"United States Seventh Fleet The Seventh Fleet is a numbered fleet (a military formation) of the United States Navy. It is headquartered at U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka, in Yokosuka, Japan, with some units based in Japan and South Korea. It is part of the United States Pacific Fleet. At present, it is the largest of the forward-deployed U.S. fleets, with 60 to 70 ships, 300 aircraft and 40,000 Navy and Marine Corps personnel. Its principal responsibilities are to provide joint command in natural disaster or military operations and operational command of all naval forces in the region. The Seventh Fleet"
"and around the waters of Vietnam and continued to receive combat training at Camp Fuji, Japan and Subic Bay in the Philippines. On May 12, 1975, barely two weeks after the fall of Saigon, Khmer Rouge forces seized a U.S. flagged merchant ship, the SS Mayaguez in recognized international sea lanes claimed as territorial waters by Cambodia and removed its crew for questioning. The Khmer Rouge naval forces used abandoned US Navy ""Swift Boats"" in the seizure of the U.S. container ship. Calling the seizure ""piracy"", President Ford ordered a military response to retake the ship and its 39-man crew,"
"ran into trouble, as in one case when a freighter ran aground. ""Fiske"" remained in the Red Sea, Indian Ocean, and Strait of Hormuz areas until August. Liberty Ports of Call were unusual for US warships. They included Djibouti, French Somaliland; Massawa, Ethiopia; Bahrain; Karg Island, Madagascar; Diego-Suarez, and Mombasa, Kenya. ""Fiske"" treated Massawa as her ""homeport"" away from home. The plan for ""Fiske"" to return to Newport was to include a stop at Caracas, Venezuela. These plans were quickly changed when the carrier suffered numerous explosions and fires on 29 July 1967 while operating in Vietnam. New orders were"
"throughout the war, and for some years to follow. A ""casus belli"" played a prominent role during the Six-Day War of 1967. The Israeli government had a short list of """", acts that it would consider provocations justifying armed retaliation. The most important was a blockade of the Straits of Tiran leading into Eilat, Israel's only port to the Red Sea, through which Israel received much of its oil. After several border incidents between Israel and Egypt's allies Syria and Jordan, Egypt expelled UNEF peacekeepers from the Sinai Peninsula, established a military presence at Sharm el-Sheikh, and announced a blockade"
"1950 by redesignation of the former Sixth Task Fleet, which in turn was the 1948 redesignation of U S Naval Forces, Mediterranean. Since that time, it has been continually engaged in world affairs around the Mediterranean, and, on occasion, further afield. It was involved in numerous NATO maritime exercises, the U.S. Lebanese intervention of 1958, confrontation with the Soviets during the Yom Kippur War (also known as the October War) of 1973, clearance of the Suez Canal after 1973, several confrontations with Libya during the 1980s (including Operation El Dorado Canyon), and maintenance of task forces in the Adriatic during"