Historically, Aden would import goods from the African coast and from
Europe, the United States, and India. As of 1920, the British described it as
"the chief emporium of Arabian trade, receiving the small quantities of
native produce, and supplying the modest wants of the interior and of most of
the smaller Arabian ports." At the docks, the city provided coal to passing
ships. The only item being produced by the city, as of 1920, was salt. Also,
the port was the stop ships had to take when entering the Bab-el-Mandeb; this
was how cities like Mecca had received goods by ship. Yemen Airlines, the
national airline of
