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CONFIDENTIAL
GRS 450
CON
NTIAL
FM HONG KONG 211030Z JAN 82
TO PRIORITY F C O
TELEGRAM NUMBER 121 OF 21 JANUARY
Нак
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TOP COPY
PA
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Ken
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INFO PRIORITY PEKING, ROUTINE HONG KONG GOVERNMENT OFFICE LONDON.
BORDER INCURSIONS BY CHINESE HELICOPTER.
1. ON 15 JANUARY AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL, KAI TAK RECEIVED A MESSAGE
FROM CANTON SAYING THAT BETWEEN THAT DAY AND 15 FEBRUARY A CHINESE HELICOPTER WOULD BE CARRYING OUT MAPPING FLIGHTS NORTH OF THE BORDER. IT WOULD CROSS THE BORDER TO A DEPTH OF ABOUT 5 8 KMS. ON THREE UNSPECIFIED DAYS: THEY WOULD INFORM KAI TAK OF DETAILS OF THE FLIGHTS EACH DAY. ON 17 JANUARY KAI TAK RECEIVED A
FURTHER MESSAGE SAYING THAT A FLIGHT ACROSS THE BORDER WOULD TAKE PLACE THAT DAY. ON INSTRUCTIONS, NO ACKNOWLEDGEMENT WAS SENT. THE ASSISTANT POLITICAL ADVISER (IN THE ABSENCE OF THE POLITICAL ADVISER) TOLD NCNA THAT FLIGHTS OF THIS SORT WERE NOT SIMPLY A TECHNICAL MATTER AND THAT THEY SHOULD NOT TAKE PLACE BEFORE THERE
HAD BEEN DISCUSSIONS BETWEEN BOTH SIDES.
2. ON 19 JANUARY THE CHINESE HELICOPTER MAPPING NORTH OF HONG KONG
CROSSED THE BORDER SEVERAL TIMES OVER A PERIOD OF TWO HOURS. THE DEEPEST INCURSION WAS ABOUT 800 METRES.
3. THE POLITICAL ADVISER TODAY SUMMONED THE NCNA. GIVING FULL
DETAILS OF THE INCURSIONS ON 19 JANUARY, HE SAID HE WAS SURPRISED AND CONCERNED THAT THESE INCIDENTS HAD TAKEN PLACE, PARTICULARLY IN
LIGHT OF THE EARLIER DISCUSSIONS BETWEEN APA AND NCNA. HE WAS
ALSO CONCERNED FROM AN AIR SAFETY POINT OF VIEW. CANTON HAD NOTIFIED OUR AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL AUTHORITIES ON 19 JANUARY OF THE HELICOPTER MAPPING FLIGHTS INTENDED FOR THAT DAY. IN RESPONSE TO ENQUIRIES THEY HAD GIVEN AN ASSURANCE THAT THE FLIGHTS WOULD NOT CROSS THE BORDER. IF ASSURANCES ABOUT THE POSITION OF AN AIRCRAFT COULD NOT BE RELIED UPON THERE WAS A SERIOUS POTENTIAL HAZARD TO AIR SAFETY. FINALLY THE PA SAID IT WAS INAPPROPRIATE FOR FLIGHTS
OF THIS NATURE SIMPLY TO BE ANNOUNCED TO THE CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITIES IN A ROUTINE AND LAST-MINUTE MESSAGE. THE MATTER SHOULD HAVE BEEN DISCUSSED FIRST AT A POLITICAL LEVEL BETWEEN THE
NCNA AND THE PA'S OFFICE.
CONFIDENTIAL
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