Passengers leaving the P&O liner Cathay.

Repro ID: H4780

Description: Passengers leaving the P&O liner ‘Cathay’ (13,351 GRT) in London in July 1967. She was the first liner back in London after the closure of the Suez Canal (following the outbreak of the Six Day War between Israel and Egypt) forced all vessels to divert around the Cape. The closure of the Suez Canal was another major blow to the shipping lines, which were already losing customers to the airlines. The ‘Cathay’ had been built as the ‘Baudouinville’ (1957) and had linked Belgium with its colony in Congo until the latter’s independence in 1960. She was bought by P&O and renamed in 1961. She was sold to China in 1976.

Creator: Unknown

Date: 2 July 1967

Credit line: National Maritime Museum, London