From: J. Dromgoole
*AUS(GS)
CONFIDENTIAL NTIAL
MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
Main Building, Whitehall, London SWIA 2HB Telephone (Direct Dialling) or-218-6476
(Switchboard) 01-218 9000
AUS(GS) 46/78 (D/DS6/16/43/2)
on file
file to my
L.M.Davies, Esq., CMG, OBE
Secretary for Security Colonial Secretariat
Lower Albert Road
Hong Kong.
Dear вий
26 January 1978
SEC8F?
Bab 2 78
LETTER
Since your visit to the Ministry of Defence in August we have been able to progress the Naval Staff Target (NST) for the replace- ment of the patrol craft which form the Hong Kong Squadron to the stage where it was endorsed by the Naval Projects Committee shortly before Christmas. In this process the contributions and comments you and your people made in response to our informal approaches were most helpful.
2. My intention in writing to you now is to let you know how we intend to handle the project over the next few months, at the end of which a detailed, specific Naval Staff Requirement (NSR) will emerge. To set the scene I am attaching as an Annex a short paper which summarises the significant conclusions of the NST. You will note that we have recommended a solution based on the provision of patrol craft only, although serious consideration was given to a mixed force comprising a frigate as well as patrol craft. This latter option was rejected on the grounds that a through life cost comparison over 20 years showed such a mixed Squadron to be more than 40% costlier than one made up of 5 patrol craft, and, of course, that experience during the past 2 years has indicated that a Squadron comprising patrol craft only has few operational disadvantages
3. We have therefore now commissioned a Craft Study which will produce outline patrol craft options to meet the NST. These, and supporting studies en communications and weapon system, should be completed and available for MOD consideration by the end of April. I suggest therefore that it would be appropriate for a session of formal discussions to be held in, say, June or July, between the Hong Kong Government and the Ministry of Defence, at which we could ascertain your views, and make the necessary decisions as preferred patrol craft solution, on the basis of which we can begin to prepare the NSR. I think it would be proferable for such dis- cussions to take place in London; this would enable us to field all our experts to present the results of their studies.
4.
There remain two points concerning costs. The solution in the NST, which for the present is based on the assumption that 5
CONFIDENTIALTAL
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