TNAG-0781-FCO40-985-Involvement-of-Hong-Kong-in-air-services-agreements-1978 — Page 36

CONFIDENTIAL

GR 490

CONFIDENTIAL

FM HONG KONG 050347Z DEC 78

PA

705

KK

Sumply their

TO PRIORITY FOREIGN AND COMMONWEALTH OFFICE

INFO PRIORITY PEKING,

TELNO.1392 OF 5 DECEMBER,

HKK 184/1

RECEIVED IN REGISTRY NO. 51

5 DEC 1978

DESK O

INDEX

2

RECATRY Action Ten

ROUTINE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON.

•No

497

PEKING TELNO.868 TO YOU: U.K/CHINA AIR SERVICES.

1. A WEEK-BY-WEEK EXTENSION OF THE PRESENT ARRANGEMENTS FOR NON-SCHEDULED FLIGHTS IS ONE POSSIBLE WAY OF GIVING THE CHINESE TIME FOR CAREFUL CONSIDERATION OF THE ISSUES AND YET MAINTAINING PRESSURE TO REACH A DECISION RATHER MORE QUICKLY THAN WOULD THE FALL-BACK POSITION OF THREE MONTHS OPERATION. BUT IT WOULD NOT BE A SATISFACTORY WAY TO DEAL WITH THE PROBLEM FOR MORE THAN 2-3 WEEKS. ANYTHING LONGER THAN THIS WOULD GIVE THE CHINESE THE CLEAR IMPRESSION THAT WE WERE WILLING TO GO ALONG WITH WEEKLY RENEWALS FOR 52 WEEKS OF THE YEAR. SHOULD YOU BE PREPARED TO CONCEDE THIS, IT WOULD BE BETTER TO AGREE LONGER PERIODS WITH THE GREATER SECURITY OF TENURE THEY WOULD GIVE.

2. CAAC'S PREFERENCE THAT HONG KONG SHOULD APPROVE THESE SERVICES ON A REGIONAL BASIS MAY WELL BE INFLUENCED BY THEIR KNOWLEDGE THAT THE U.K'S APPROVAL OF SCHEDULED SERVICES UNDER THE HONG KONG AIR TRANSPORT (LICENSING OF AIR SERVICES) REGULATIONS HAS A CONNOTATION THAT THE SERVICES WOULD THEN BE BETWEEN TWO FOREIGN TERRITORIES, IN THAT SUCH APPROVAL IS RESTRICTED TO QUOTE SCHEDULED

JOURNEYS BETWEEN TWO PLACES, ONE OF WHICH IS IN THE COLONY UNQUOTE, 1.E. BY IMPLICATION INTERNATIONAL JOURNEYS. THE CHINESE MIGHT THEREFORE FEEL THAT THEY WERE ERODING THEIR POSITION THAT

Position HONG KONG IS PART OF CHINA BY AGREEING TO SUCH SERVICES. on the ASA

{

3. PARA.3 OF PEKING'S TEL UNDER REF QUERIES WHETHER THE FLIGHTS

RATHER COULD BE CALLED NON-SCHEDULED, OR SIMPLY ''FLIGHTS'', THAN CHARTERS. UNDER OUR REGULATIONS, ALL REVENUE FLIGHTS HAVE TO BE EITHER SCHEDULED (AND APPROVED BY D OF T) OR NON-SCHEDULED (AND APPROVED LOCALLY BY THE D.C.A). CHARTERS FORM THE VAST MAJORITY OF NON-SCHEDULED FLIGHTS AND ARE THE ONLY FORM OF SUCH FLIGHTS APPROPRIATE TO THE SORT OF REGULAR SERVICE THE CHINESE

CONFIDENTIAL

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