THE ARMED SERVICES AND AUXILIARY SERVICES
189
Apart from normal military work, the Army is always ready to help the local population. Sometimes it may be a planned project, for instance the building of a Youth Recreation Centre in Shau Kei Wan or else it may be in an emergency as when a volunteer patrol of the Duke of Wellington's Regiment recovered the bodies of two civilians killed by lightning on a high peak in the Sai Kung peninsula.
Units which have been stationed in the Colony during 1970 include C Squadron, The Queen's Own Hussars; B Squadron, The 14th/ 20th King's Hussars; 25th Light Regiment Royal Artillery; 1st Bat- talion the Irish Guards; 1st Battalion The Royal Welch Fusiliers; 1st Battalion The Duke of Wellington's Regiment; and from the Brigade of Gurkhas, 6th Queen Elizabeth's Own Gurkha Rifles, 7th Duke of Edinburgh's Own Gurkha Rifles, 10th Princess Mary's Own Gurkha Rifles, together with squadrons of Engineer, Signals and Transport units of the Brigade. In addition, 40 Commando Royal Marines and B Squadron The Royal Hussars have served tours of duty in the Colony.
The Royal Air Force Station at Kai Tak is a separate enclave adjacent to the civil airport and uses the airport's runway and control services. The RAF has its own radar and signal facilities for the long distance control of military aircraft approaching Hong Kong. These facilities are shared by the Director of Civil Aviation to ensure the safety of civil aircraft operating within the Hong Kong flight in- formation region,
No. 28 Squadron, based permanently at Kai Tak, is equipped with ten Whirlwind helicopters. It is established primarily for the rapid movement of troops and supplies and in one lift can transport a complete platoon. In addition, it provides a standby aircraft for search and rescue in the Colony and the near waters, and assists in the evacuation of casualties from the islands and New Territories. Vulcan strike aircraft continued their training flights from the United Kingdom, supplemented by detachments of Phantom fighter bomb- ers and Victor tanker aircraft. RAF transport aircraft activity has maintained the now established regular pattern.
The continuing secure and stable situation in Hong Kong in 1970 has enabled the Armed Forces to extend their activities in providing help of all kinds to the local community. These have varied between
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