IN CONFIDENCE
Tuesday 13th July
VISIT TO OSBORNE BARRACKS
The Committee visited Osborne Barracks where they were briefed on the roles of support troops by the Commander, Support Troops and DCBF, Brigadier Hodges.
The Headquarters, Support Troops administered non-self administering units, co-ordinated works services and maintained local Defence Area I.S. plans. Within the Command was the Composite Ordnance Depot; the British Military Hospital in Kow Loon; Workshop/REME facilities.
Members of the Committee visited the Chinese language school and workshops.
ROYAL NAVY
The Committee was briefed next on the Royal Navy's role in Hong Kong at HMS Tamar and went out on HMS Monkton, a patrol craft, as well as inspecting a decompression chamber used in diving emergencies.
In addition to guarding British shipping in the area and maintaining surveillance of Soviet ships, the RN give maritime support to the RHKPF, especially in the detection of water- borne IIS. HMS Tamar, its HQ, is a bi-Service establishment shared with the Army. Relations with the other services were said to be good, although naval family welfare is looked after somewhat outside the SSAFA umbrella. The Navy complement in Hong Kong is 50 officers and 550 (mainly local) ratings whose pay is tied to Hong Kong rates and who are not fully inte- grated into the Royal Navy. The fleet of 5 patrol craft is composed of 25-year old ex-minesweepers with a top speed of only 15 knots. They are no match for the speedboats in which many IIs enter Hong Kong, although their small powered rubber dinghies (with a speed of 40 knots) are pretty effective in this role especially when the blinding searchlights carried by
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