FRIDAY, MAY 30, 197
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NEW COMMANDING OFFICER FOR RHKAAF
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THE ROYAL HONG KONG AUXILIARY AIR FORCE WILL HAVE A NEW COMMANDING OFFICER FROM SUNDAY (JUNE 1) WHEN WING COMMANDER ROSS PENLINGTON TAKES OVER FROM WING COMMANDER SIMON ELLIS,
WING COMMANDER PENLINGTON, 44, IS A MEMBER OF THE LEGAL DEPARTMENT AND IS CURRENTLY ASSISTANT TO THE LAW OFFICERS. HE JOINED THE RHKAAF IN 1965 HAVING PREVIOUSLY SERVED WITH THE ROYAL NEW ZEALAND TERRITORIAL AIR FORCE.
WING COMMANDER ELLIS, IN PRIVATE LIFE CHAIRMAN OF THE ENGLISH DEPARTMENT AT THE CHINESE UNIVERSITY'S CHUNG CHI COLLEGE HAS COMMANDED THE RHKAAF FOR NEARLY FOUR YEARS. HE HAD PREVIOUSLY SERVED WITH THE ROYAL AIR FORCE VOLUNTEERS RESERVE.
COMMENTING ON THE RHKAAF, WING COMMANDER ELLIS DESCRIBED IT AS THE BEST BARGAIN THE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT HAS GOT,+ AND HE WAS GLAD THAT THIS WAS INCREASINGLY BEING REALISED.
+THE RHKAAF IS A UNIQUE ORGANIZATION, COMBINING PERMANENT AND AUXILIARY STAFF TO PROVIDE ESSENTIAL AND SPECIALIZED FLYING SERVICES TO THE COMMUNITY. HE SAID. +OUR ALOUETTE HELICOPTERS ARE FLYING 150 SERIOUSLY ILL OR WOUNDED PEOPLE FROM OLLYING AREAS TO HOSPITAL EVERY YEAR, DAY AND NIGHT, AND HALF OF THESE ARE FLOWN BY AUXILIARY PILOTS AND CREWMEN, AT A GREAT SAVING TO THE TAXPAYER.
+APART FROM THIS 24-HOUR A DAY EMERGENCY SERVICE, THE HELICOPTERS PROVIDE THE GOVERNMENT WITH A QUICK AND RELIABLE MEANS OF TRANSPORT TO ANY PLACE IN HONG KONG.+
THE RHKAAF'S FIXED-WING TWIN-ENGINED ISLANDER' AIRCRAFT ACQUIRED THREE YEARS AGO HAD BEEN AN OUTSTANDING SUCCESS, HE SAID. THE ISLANDER' IS EQUIPPED WITH A MODERN AERIAL SURVEY CAMERA PURCHASED BY CROWN LANDS AND SURVEY OFFICE AND HAS MADE HONG
KONG SELF SUFFICIENT IN AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHY FOR MAPPING AND PLANNING PURPOSES,
THE ISLANDER'S SPEED AND SIZE MAKE IT IDEAL FOR THE RADAR APPROACH TRAINING FOR AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS AT THE AIRPORT, AND ITS RANGE AND COMPREHENSIVE NAVIGATIONAL AIDS, INCLUDING RADAR, GIVE IT AN IMPRESSIVE SEARCH-AND-RESCUE CAPABILITY AT SEA.
+THIS CAPABILITY HAS ALSO BEEN OF USE TO IMMIGRATION AND THE PREVENTIVE SERVICE AND MOST OBVIOUSLY TO THE NARCOTICS BUREAU OF THE POLICE. TWO THAI TRAWLERS SUSPECTED OF CARRYING LARGE QUANTITIES OF DRUGS WERE RECENTLY LOCATED, PHOTOGRAPHED AND TRACKED AT SEA UP TO A DISTANCE OF 100 MILES. THIS IS AN IMPORTANT NEW WEAPON FOR HONG KONG IN THE WAR AGAINST DRUGS,+ WING COMMANDER ELLIS SAID.
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