TNAG-0779-FCO40-983-Involvement-of-Hong-Kong-in-air-services-agreements-1978 — Page 24

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probably have to re-negotiate her Air Service

Agreements with the UK, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand,

The country India and a number of European countries.

most seriously affected would be Singapore. We would

have to reduce SIA's air services between Singapore

and London from 7 to about 3 a week; Australia would have to cut them on the Singapore/Australia route from 14 to about 5 a week. Singapore's tourist trade would

suffer immediately from fewer short stops by passengers

However, en route Australia-Europe in both directions. calculations done by the Australians on the assumption

that, following the introduction of cheaper fares between Australia and Singapore, more Australians would spend longer holidays in Singapore, suggest that Singapore's, net loss on tourism from Australia could be

₤2m as low as 3. per year. The comparable loss on tourism from Europe is not quantifiable but it could be

significant. Of the other countries, in air service

terms, Malaysia could actually improve her present

position, largely at the expense of Singapore.

she is likely to complain that the new arrangement

will have the effect of inhibiting her ambitions for MAS's expansion which she explained to a UK delegation

in London in May. There may be some truth in this.

But Malaysia would have no justification in air

service terms for such a complaint. In any case we

made no commitment to help Malaysia realise her ambitions

for MAS: we simply expressed sympathy with the need

But