ENG-1985 — Page 274

THE ARMED SERVICES AND AUXILIARY SERVICES

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Support is provided by a number of units permanently based in Hong Kong. These include the Queen's Gurkha Engineers, the Queen's Gurkha Signals, the Gurkha Transport Regiment, 660 Squadron Army Air Corps, the Composite Ordnance Depot, the British Military Hospital, and 50 Hong Kong Workshops, Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers.

Hong Kong people play an important role through their support of the Royal Hong Kong Regiment (The Volunteers) – a locally enlisted regiment of part-time soldiers – and the Hong Kong Military Service Corps, which is also locally enlisted but forms part of the British Army. The latter corps is staffed by full-time regular soldiers and numbers 1 263 Chinese officers and men who serve throughout Hong Kong as guards, military policemen, interpreters, dog-handlers, drivers, cooks, clerks, seamen and storemen. The Hong Kong Military Service Corps provides a valuable contribution to the garrison and has played an important role in operations against illegal immigrants.

The primary role of the Army is to support the Royal Hong Kong Police Force in maintaining internal security; it is also responsible for preserving the integrity of the border. In recent years, its major task has been to help with the control of illegal immigration, with individual battalions spending an average of three months a year on border duties. A high level of border vigilance was maintained throughout 1985. Improvements to border security are constantly being made and anti-illegal immigration operations continue to play a major part in the daily life of the Army.

Owing to limited space and the unsuitability of much of Hong Kong's terrain for training, a series of overseas exercises was mounted to maintain the high standards of military skills. During the year, exercises took place in Malaysia, Brunei, New Zealand, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Australia and Singapore. In addition, a detachment from Hong Kong participated in a Five Power Defence Agreement exercise in Australia. Units of the Gurkha Field Force also played host to visiting detachments from the Papua New Guinea Defence Force, 1st Battalion Royal Australian Regiment, the Royal Brunei Armed Forces, and New Zealand Forces based in Singapore.

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The high standard of shooting of Hong Kong-based units was demonstrated at the 1985 Regular Skill at Arms Meeting held at Bisley, England. Lance Corporal Khusiman Gurung of the 6th Queen Elizabeth's Own Gurkha Rifles was awarded the Queen's Medal and Army Rifle Association Gold Jewel, and the team from Depot, Hong Kong Military Service Corps, came third for the second successive year in its particular competition.

Royal Air Force

The main element of the Royal Air Force in Hong Kong is based at Sek Kong in the New Territories. The No. 28 (Army Co-operation) Squadron operates 10 Wessex helicopters from Sek Kong airfield, and is supported by engineering and administrative squadrons. Included in the supporting element is an air traffic control unit, which also provides an advisory control service outside Hong Kong International Airport airspace. Movement of military personnel and cargo by air from Hong Kong International Airport is controlled by the RAF Airport Unit based at Kai Tak, while the RAF Provost and Security Services Unit is located at Blackdown Barracks, San Po Kong. Additionally, RAF personnel serve on the staff of Headquarters British Forces, in the Joint Air Tasking Cell, and in the Joint Services Movements Centre.

The Wessex helicopters are employed in direct support of the Army and can each carry up to 14 troops or 1 400 kilograms of freight anywhere within Hong Kong. The helicopter is the only practicable way of moving troops, rations and equipment quickly to outlying