Atlanta Daily World

Egypt Suffers Labor Shortage At S. Canal

CAIRO (INS)-Egypt's new nationalized Canal authority ran into its first serious difficulty in operating the Suez Canal traffic Wednesday because of a shortage of pilots.

Officials insisted that traffic was almost normal, however, as the Arab world planned a strike of 10,000,000 to 15,000,000 persons today to protest the opening of the London International Conference on Suez.

Egypt will not officially be represented at the London conference, but informants said President Gamal Abdel Nasser's press secretary, Col. Kamel El Hennawy, is flying to London in an observer's role.

The British embassy granted a visa on application from Nasser's chief political officer, wing commander, Aly Sabry, but presidential sources said later Sabry had decided not to go to Britain.

Local and foreign air lines announced diversion of their planes from Cairo's International Airport late last night and today so that their craft will not be affected by the general strike.

Egypt has sent out an "SOS" for more canal pilots. Officials were reported looking to the Soviet bloc of states for recruits to replace British, French and other non-Egyptian pilots who form the bulk of such key personnel.

The Egyptian canal authority dropped its first public hint of serious operating trouble when it announced that daily convoys were being reduced from four to three.

This means that there will be only one instead of two daily northbound convoys from the Red Sea to