GR 330
CONFIDENTIAL
FM FCO 051725Z NOV 79
O ROUTINE CANBERRA
TELEGRAM NUMBER 533 OF 6 NOVEMBER
CONFIDENTIAL
HKK 184/1
RELIVED IN REGISTAT MU. 51
- 8 NOV 1979
448
INFO HONG KONG (GOVERNOR AND BCARFE)
471
IND
A
RESTRY
492
MY TELNO. 504 AND HONG KONG TELNO. 1504: UK/AUSTRALIA AIR SERVICES, 1. WILL YOU PLEASE PASS THE FOLLOWING MESSAGE TO ROWLAND FROM
ROBERTS. BEGINS.
I AM NOW ABLE TO LET YOU HAVE OUR VIEWS ABOUT WHETHER WE WOULD WISH TO RETAIN LIMITED FIFTH FREEDOM RIGHTS ON SERVICES BETWEEN HONG KONG AND PERTH. IT IS THE VIEW OF CPA THAT THE AMOUNT OF TRAFFIC ON THE FIFTH FREEDOM SECTORS OUT OF PERTH TRAVELLING AT THE FULL NORMAL ECONOMY AND FIRST CLASS FARES WOULD, AFTER THE INTRODUCTION OF THE NEW LOW FARES CONFINED TO THIRD/FOURTH FREE- DOM CARRIERS ONLY, BE SO SMALL AS TO MAKE LITTLE DIFFERENCE TO THE VIABILITY OF THE ROUTE. THEY INTEND THEREFORE AT THE APPROP- RIATE TIME TO FOLLOW UP THE PROPOSAL MADE AT THE JANUARY MEETING IN CANBERRA AND TO REPLACE THEIR EXISTING PERTH SERVICES BY A ONCE WEEKLY SERVICE ON A TRIAL BASIS VIA DARWIN.
AT THAT TIME WE WOULD EXPECT QANTAS TO CEASE EXERCISING FIFTH FREEDOM RIGHTS BETWEEN MANILA AND HONG KONG AND TO REDUCE THEIR SERVICES BETWEEN E. AUSTRALIA AND HONG KONG FROM FOUR A WEEK TO THREE A WEEK. THE SEVENTH SERVICE ON THE ROUTE WHEN TRAFFIC JUSTIFIED IT WOULD, AS AGREED AT THE JANUARY MEETING IN CANBERRA, BE OPERATED BY CPA. IF QANTAS FOR OPERATIONAL REASONS WISHED TO CONTINUE TO COMBINE ITS E. AUSTRALIA-MANILA AND E. AUSTRALIA-HONG KONG SERVICES WE WOULD HAVE NO STRONG OBJECTIONS, BUT WOULD HAVE THOUGHT THAT YOU MIGHT HAVE SEEN SOME MERIT IN MAINTAINING THE PURITY OF THE ICAP CONCEPT IN AT LEAST ON CORNER OF THE WORLD. I WOULD WELCOME A SUGGESTION FROM YOU AS TO THE DATE WHEN THESE CHANGES SHOULD COME INTO EFFECT THOUGH I WOULD HOPE THIS WOULD NOT BE MUCH, IF AT ALL, LATER THAN THE END OF THE YEAR. ENDS. 2. FOR HONG KONG. ALTHOUGH CPA, IN THE INDONESIAN CONTEXT, STATED THAT THEY INTENDED TO WITHDRAW THEIR PERTH SERVICES OVER JAKARTA AND KUALA LUMPUR ON 9TH MARCH 1980, WE MUST ASSUME BY IMPLICATION FROM PARA 3 OF SECOND TELEGRAM UNDER REFERENCE THAT THEY WOULD BE CONTENT TO WITHDRAW THEM FROM THE END OF 1979.
CARRINGTON
[COPIES SENT TO CAD/DOT]
FILES
MISS BROWN
MAED
SPD
COPIES TO: MR ROBERTS MR STABLES
} CAIR/DOT
HK & GD
CONFIDENTIAL