19 February 1969 (Israel ) within release Ports Of Israel goes into circulation First Day Cover Port of Elat face value 0.30 Israeli lira
Jaffa, or rather Tel Aviv–Yafo, together with Haifa, Ashdod, Ashkelon, Hadera and Eilat are Israel’s main port cities. Each has featured in one way or another – to a greater or lesser degree – on the country’s postage stamp issue.
Haifa and Ashdod on the Mediterranean, and Eilat in the Gulf of Eilat are the largest of Israel’s international ports. Although not as busy as these three, the Mediterranean port of Ashkelon has emerged as the port handling the largest volume of cargo containers and it is Israel’s sixth largest city.
The Port of Eilat is the only Israeli port on the Red Sea, located at the northern tip of the Gulf of Aqaba.
The Port of Eilat opened in 1955 and is today mainly used for trading with Far East countries. It allows Israeli shipping to reach the Indian Ocean without having to sail through the Suez Canal. Egyptian naval blockades of the Straits of Tiran which control access to Eilat featured prominently in the events which led to two major Arab-Israeli Conflicts: The Sinai War and the Six-Day War.
Ship traffic at Eilat is relatively low (compared to Israel's two large seaports on the Mediterranean). One reason is that Eilat is situated at a considerable distance from the center of the country. Another is the fact that unlike the country's other main seaports, Eilat's is yet to be served by a railway line (the nearest railhead is located over a hundred kilometers to the north at Dimona).
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