 The name "Yellow Fleet" derived from their yellow appearance as they were increasingly covered in a desert sand swept on board.After eight years, the only ships that were able to return to their home port under their own power were the West German ships "Münsterland" and "Nordwind".In June 1967 the fifteen ships were sailing northwards through the Suez Canal as a war broke out between Israel and Egypt in what was to become known as the Six-Day War.