CO129-513-9 Proposals for civil and commercial aviation in Hong Kong- requests for air-routes between Hong Kong... 13-11-1928 - 30-9-1929 — Page 66

Copy.

Copy to Hongkong

Oanton

Shanghai

Hanking 7.0.

with two enclosures.

sir,

British Legation.

Peking.

7th February, 1929.

660

I am directed by His Majesty's Minister to

acknowledge the receipt of your letter of January 28th

concerning the project which you recently discuss að

with him of establishing a commercial air service between

Hong Kong and Chinese coastal porta.

2.

From your conversation with Sir Miles Lamps on

and from the contents of your letter it would appear that

you are under a misapprehension es to the position of the

Chinese Government with regard to the licensing of foreign

commercial avistion.

3.

It is true that Chine was a signatory of the

International Air Convention of 1919 but ap till September

last she had not ratified it and, as far as this Legation

are aware, she has not yet done so.

Moreover even after

ratification she would be under no obligation in the above

respect beyond that of according" the right of innocent passage

above her territory to the aircraft of the other contracting

Statea" (Article 2 of the Convention) and Article 16

expressly states that:

4.

"Each contracting State shall bave the right to "establish reservations and restrictions in favour "of its national sircraft in connection with the "carriage of persons and goods for hire between "two points of its territory".

The Chinese Government are therefore in no way

R. Vaughan-Fowler Esquire,

PIPING.

bound/