TNAG-0060-FCO40-96-Strength-of-Hong-Kong-garrison-1968 — Page 215

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Sir Arthur Galsworthy

When the Minister of State was in Hong Kong,

the question of continued air cover was raised with

him at a meeting with the Governor and the

Commander, British Forces.

We went into this on our return and the

position at that time was set out in my minute of 8 December (flag B). You will notice that the

Minister of State wished to be informed of any developments.

You will see from the minutes by

Mr. Gaminara of 13 February and Mr. Carter of 15 February that, in view of the decision to

withdraw from Singapore at an earlier date than

previously planned, the whole matter is now being reviewed and the chances of retaining any aircraft, other than helicopters, in Hong Kong are very

remote. The Ministry of Defence have made it clear

that, at the official level, there is not much chance of getting a decision in our favour (letter at (81) flag E). The Department have proposed that

Lord Shepherd should write to the Secretary of State for Defence. I agree that a letter to the

Secretary of State for Defence will at least ensure that the matter is thoroughly gone into, but my own personal feeling is that the chances of success are very remote. The main difficulty is the cost

of maintaining the aircraft at Hong Kong, which is such a vast distance from any other base. Effective

maintenance requirements will be costly and in

military terms uneconomic. On the other hand I can

fully support the political case for maintaining air

cover in Hong Kong after the withdrawal from Singapore and Malaysia.

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(H.P. Hall)

19 February, 1968