ENG-1988 — Page 312

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THE ARMED SERVICES

Squadron when they abseiled from the 58th floor (196 metres) of the Hopewell Centre. This not only won the team an entry in the Guiness Book of Records but also raised over $500,000 for a local kidney patients charity.

The Army

The Army provides the majority of the forces in Hong Kong under the direct command of the Commander Land Forces. Command of operational units is exercised on behalf of the Commander British Forces by the Commander 48 Gurkha Infantry Brigade, while logistic units are commanded by the Commander Support Troops.

The 1st Battalion the Duke of Edinburgh's Royal Regiment (Berkshire and Wiltshire) replaced the 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards in February as the United Kingdom resident battalion. The 1st and 2nd Battalions the King Edward VII's Own Gurkha Rifles were resident in Hong Kong throughout the year while the 7th Duke of Edinburgh's Own Gurkha Rifles replaced the 10th Princess Mary's Own Gurkha Rifles in November.

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 about 1 270 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 continues to play an important role in operations against illegal immigrants.

The primary role of the Army is to support the Police Force in maintaining internal security, and to be 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 the year. Improvements to border security are constantly being made and anti-illegal immigration operations continue to be a regular part of army life. The army have also provided logistic support to the Hong Kong Government, assisting with the movement and administration of the influx of Vietnamese boat people.

Owing to limited space and the unsuitability of much of Hong Kong's terrain for training, a series of overseas exercises is mounted to maintain high standards of military skills. As a contribution to stability in the region, part of the garrison participated in a Five Power Defence Agreement exercise in New Zealand. A major exercise was mounted in Brunei in August to assist the Royal Brunei Armed Forces in training for joint operations. Units of 48 Gurkha Infantry Brigade also played host to visiting detachments from the Australian Army, the New Zealand Army, the United States Army and the Royal Brunei Armed Forces.

The high standard of shooting of Hong Kong-based units was demonstrated at the 1988 Regular Skill at Arms Meeting held at Bisley, England. The Queen's Gurkha Signals won the Series B Major Units Championship, which included winning a record seven matches in their league. Sergeant Krishna Gurung, Queen's Gurkha Signals, won first place in the Army sub-machine gun championship. The Defence Animal Support Unit won the pistol match again this year and the Brigade of Gurkhas won the prestigious Methuen Cup.