This is a sight we don't see any more.
It was Monday, February 9, 1970, and thousands were gathered at South Shields - and elsewhere along the Tyne - as the newly-completed supertanker Esso Northumbria spectacularly made its way out of the river.
The stunning image is the latest shared with ChronicleLive by photographer and historian Mick Ray.
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Mick says: "According to information supplied by someone who worked on it - at that time, and for only a couple of weeks, it was actually the largest ship in the world by a few inches. It’s pictured here leaving for sea trials. It never came back as ships of that size were difficult to turn around on the narrow river."
The Esso Northumbria was one of the giant oil-carrying vessels that were built on the Tyne during the late 1960s and early 1970s.
Other included the Northumbria's sister ship Esso Hibernia (1970), the World Unicorn (1973), and the Tyne Pride (1975).
The Northumbria, the most famous of the supertankers, had been launched on May 2, 1969, by 19-year-old Princess Anne at Swan Hunter shipyard in rain-lashed Wallsend. At 253,000 tons, she was the biggest ship in the world at the time.
With the maritime giant completed, and ready to set sail for open seas, an estimated 250,000 visitors flocked to witness the spectacle on that February day in 1970 .
Children were given time off school and workers nipped out of local factories and shops.
The Chronicle reported: “At times it seemed the ship – 1,143ft long by 170ft wide – would be scraping the river banks, but she made her journey without mishap.
“But it was on land that all the mayhem was caused by sightseers hoping to witness the great occasion.
“Esso Northumbria’s trip to the sea caused a massive road traffic snarl-up. All roads within a 10-mile radius of Tynemouth were blocked for hours.
“An AA spokesman called the traffic situation ‘utterly chaotic’. By mid afternoon the traffic was three lanes deep on the Coast Road between Newcastle and Tynemouth. Cars were packed like sardines into every crossroad and side lane around Tynemouth and North Shields.
“At Tynemouth sea front, where thousands had hoped for a good view of the giant tanker, no cars moved at all for more than three hours.
“It was estimated that over 100,000 cars were at a standstill at one point.
“The journey to the sea for Esso Northumbria took two hours.”
However, the giant ship's story would not be a happy one.
Mick Ray points out: "The Northumbria - and the Hibernia - were both tankers built as a reaction to the fuel crisis of that period.
"Hurriedly designed, they were both plagued by problems, especially the cracking of the huge hull plates.
"Another downside was that they were built to fixed-price contracts, and costs over-ran so much that Swan Hunter lost millions on them."
Esso Northumbria was retired in 1982 after just 12 years in service, and was broken up at Kaoshiung in Taiwan by the Tai Yuan Steel Corporation.
Mick Ray is a local historian and photographer who runs the Facebook group Old Photos of South Shields and the North East. You can find more of his examples of his work there.
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