Editing Suez Canal (section)

=== Navigation ===
Ships approaching the canal from the sea are expected to radio the harbour when they are within {{convert|15|nmi|km|abbr=off}} of the [[Safe water mark|Fairway Buoy]] near Port Said.<ref>Suez Canal Authority. Arab Republic of Egypt. Ashraf Ragab. (August 2015). Navigation in Suez Canal Rules of Navigation and Passage Procedures in Suez Canal. p. 9. [https://www.suezcanal.gov.eg/English/Navigation/Pages/RulesOfNavigation.aspx Suez Canal Authority website] Retrieved 27 March 2021.</ref> The canal has no [[canal lock|locks]] because of the flat terrain, and the minor sea level difference between each end is inconsequential for shipping. As the canal has no sea surge gates, the ports at the ends would be subject to the sudden impact of [[tsunami]]s from the Mediterranean Sea and Red Sea, according to a 2012 article in the ''Journal of Coastal Research''.<ref name="FinklPelinovsky2012">{{cite journal|last1=Finkl|first1=Charles W.|last2=Pelinovsky|first2=Efim|last3=Cathcart|first3=Richard B.|title=A Review of Potential Tsunami Impacts to the Suez Canal|journal=Journal of Coastal Research|volume=283|issue=4|year=2012|pages=745–759|issn=0749-0208|doi=10.2112/JCOASTRES-D-12A-00002.1|bibcode=2012EGUGA..14...76F|s2cid=54644781}}</ref>

There is one shipping lane with passing areas in Ballah-Bypass near [[El Qantara]] and in the Great Bitter Lake. On a typical day, three convoys transit the canal, two southbound and one northbound. The passage takes between 11 and 16 hours at a speed of around {{convert|8|kn|kph mph|0}}. The low speed helps prevent erosion of the banks by ships' [[Wake (physics)|wakes]].

By 1955, about two-thirds of Europe's oil passed through the canal. Around 8% of world sea trade is carried via the canal. In 2008, 21,415 vessels passed through the canal and the receipts totalled $5.381 billion,<ref name="suezcanal.gov.eg"/> with an average cost per ship of $251,000.

New Rules of Navigation came into force on 1 January 2008, passed by the board of directors of the [[Suez Canal Authority]] (SCA) to organise vessels' transit. The most important amendments include allowing vessels with {{convert|62|ft|m|order=flip|adj=on}} draught to pass, increasing the allowed breadth from {{convert|32|to|40|m|ft}} (following improvement operations), and imposing a fine on vessels using pilots from outside the SCA inside the canal boundaries without permission. The amendments allow vessels loaded with dangerous cargo (such as radioactive or flammable materials) to pass if they conform with the latest amendments provided by international conventions.

The SCA has the right to determine the number of [[Tugboat|tugs]] required to assist warships traversing the canal, to achieve the highest degree of safety during transit.<ref>SC News</ref>

<gallery widths="200" heights="115">
File:SuezCanal ElBallah.JPG|Ships moored at El Ballah during transit
File:USS America (CV-66) in the Suez canal 1981.jpg|{{USS|America|CV-66}}, an American aircraft carrier in the Suez Canal
File:SuezCanal4 byDanielCsorfoly.JPG|Container ship ''Hanjin Kaohsiung'' transiting the Suez Canal
</gallery>