TNAG-0843-FCO40-1053-Visit-of-Lord-Carrington--Secretary-of-State-for-Foreign-and-1979 — Page 192

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charter a British Airways VC10 in the normal way, but, as you will see, at about double the cost of the diverted service journey. In that case the Secretary of State would arrive in Peking either late on 9 April or on 10th, depending on the length of the Hong Kong stay, departing from China whenever it suited him.

11. We have in the past looked at chartering other aircraft in the Hong Kong/Tokyo area for China journeys, and we can of course consult posts, but up to now there has never been a satisfactory alternative to using either RAF or British Airways aircraft.

12. If the CENTO Meeting takes place, by far the quickest method of accomplishing the long journey to Washington, is by the daily PANAM non-stop flight from Tokyo to New York PA 800, leaving Tokyo at 1845 and arriving at JFK, New York, at 1715 the same day, flying time 8 hours 30 minutes; and travelling on to Washington by shuttle. Alternative flights take much longer eg from Hong Kong to New York (American North West Orient line) take at least 7 hours longer and to travel from Singapore, for example, means transitting Hong Kong. As Dr Owen will be visiting Tokyo in June for the Economic Summit, a very short stop-over there for the journey to the USA need not, I think, present a difficulty.

13. If the fast. Tokyo-New York scheduled service is taken by the Secretary of State on 17 April, the opportunity for post- China visits would extend either from whenever he wished to leave China by a charter aircraft or from the evening of 14 April if he uses the diverted British Airways service for the Shanghai-Hong Kong service, to the morning of 17 April, at a time when a scheduled flight departs from wherever he leaves from, for Tokyo. Some approximate scheduled flying times are:-

Hong Kong-Singapore

Hong Kong-Manila

Hong Kong-Bangkok

Hong Kong-Djakarta

Hong Kong Tokyo

Singapore-Tokyo

Bangkok-Tokyo

Manila-Tokyo

Djakarta-Tokyo

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3 hours 35 minutes

1 hour 45 minutes

2 hours 35 minutes

4 hours 30 minutes

3 hours 30 minutes

6 hours 20 minutes

5 hours 25 minutes

3 hours 40 minutes

8 hours 40 minutes

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