TNAG-0537-FCO40-632-Strength-of-garrison-in-Hong-Kong-1975 — Page 119

CONFIDENTIAL

2ND DRAFT

In addition to the initial and subsequent reinforcement of the

Sovereign Base Areas, some 22,000 civilians, including 11,700

dependants and 2,750 foreign nationals, were evacuated from the

Island. This is described in detail in Chapter III. The loss

of the major civil ports in Cyprus and the lack of alternative port

facilities has made it necessary to ship all Service sea freight in

Service Landing Ships Logistics (LSL8) discharging directly into the

Sovereign Base Areas.

54.

METEOROLOGY

Meteorological teams took part in a major international experiment (GATE) to study weather systems in the tropical Atlantic.

The hydrographic survey ship, HMS Hecla, and the Hercules aircraft of

the Meteorological Research Flight, with its wide range of

instruments, played an outstanding role in collecting observations.

A small team of meteorologists at Bracknell is collecting,

co-ordinating and analysing the data relevant to the larger-scale

weather systems, and is carrying out numerical calculations to study

the predictability of tropical weather patterns.

55.

Preparations for establishing a European Centre for medium-

range weather forecasts at Bracknell have begun. The Centre, which

is a joint venture with a number of European countries, will

undertake intensive research into the dynamics of the atmosphere

and into techniques of preparing weather forecasts for four to ten

days ahead by numerical methods, and will ultimately issue these

forecasts for use by meteorological services throughout Europe. The

Centre is expected to acquire its own computing facilities in due

course.

56.

Studies are being carried out, on behalf of the Department of

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