TNAG-0750-FCO40-954-Visits-of-Sir-Murray-MacLehose--Governor-of-Hong-Kong--to-UK-1978 — Page 83

CONFIDENTIAL

justify the proposed service which could therefore only operate at the expense of British Airways to whom the London Gulf Hong Kong route is of vital importance.

4.

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G

Following discussions in Bahrain it has been agreed that British Airways, Gulf Air and CPA should carry out a route survey which would then be used to allocate future services. Cathay Pacific fear, with some justification, that since we

maintain there is insufficient traffic

for a further operator Gulf Air can only come on to the route at the expense of CPA (since it has been accepted by the

Gulf States that BA's services would be regarded as part of an existing pattern). If this situation does seem likely to arise we would need to consider what could

be done to protect Hong Kong's interests.

CONFIDENTIAL