Air Chief Marshal (ACM) Sir Keith Park, Air Commander-in-Chief South East Asia Command, visits Hong Kong.

A bare-metal RAF Douglas Dakota transport aircraft, KN561, taxiing at Kai Tak airfield, Hong Kong. The aircraft comes to a halt and Air Chief Marshal Park disemplanes and is greeted by RAF officers. An RAF guard of honour presents arms. Park inspects the guard of honour and talks to one of the airmen. Close-up of the nose of Park's Dakota; it wears a circular badge showing an Indian snake charmer and the name 'Baksheesh II'. Park and his wife, Lady Park, get into a waiting staff car. The car departs. Park steps off an RAF seaplane tender. An RAF Short Sunderland flying boat is moored in the background. Park gets out of a jeep marked 'Kai Tak'. At Kai Tak airstrip Park addresses officers and men on the subject of demobilisation. Lady Park steps off a motor launch and stumbles a little on a deck cleat. She gets into a car and is driven off to visit an RAF Welfare Centre. She samples the food on offer and meets 'Little Wings' a young Chinese boy 'adopted' by a local Spitfire unit, RAF 132 Squadron. ACM Park and Lady Park visit an RAF hospital in Kowloon and speak to recuperating patients and medical staff. ACM Park and party on a seaside cliff. Park leaves, with other officers, in a jeep marked 'AOC' (Air Officer Commanding). Park surveys the site of a new airfield in the New Territories. At a granite quarry a noticeboard declares 'WARNING: BLASTING IN PROGRESS'. Park presses a plunger to detonate a blasting charge; shot of a large explosion that scatters lumps of rock and kicks up a huge cloud of dust. Park speaking to RAF men. Park visits an RAF recreation club. Japanese prisoners of war at work clearing rocks, probably at the quarry seen earlier. Park's car arrives at RAF recreation club and he goes inside. Park and other officers inspect a waterfront swimming pool undergoing repairs.

Notes

Lady Park appears in uniform in this film, and at one point is seen to be wearing a shoulder flash comprising a dark shield with a small (probably red) cross and a white Maltese cross with 'British' across the top. This is probably the badge of the Joint War Organisation of the Red Cross and St John Ambulance.

'Little Wings' was one of two young brothers temporarily adopted by the airmen of RAF 132 Squadron. For his background, see the entry for ABY 169.

Captions for the Army photographs below (SE- series) name the site of the new airfield as Ping Shan. However, the only RAF airfield in the Hong Kong area besides Kai Tak was named RAF Sek Kong, and did not open until 1950. It was used by RAF 28 Squadron and RAF 80 Squadron at various points between 1950 and 1997 as a base for late-mark Spitfires, De Havilland Vampire and Venom jet fighter-bombers, and Westland Whirlwind and Wessex helicopters.

Photograph gen sheet names the following personalities:

Admiral Sir Cecil Harcourt (Senior Naval Officer and Head of the Military Government of Hong Kong).

Air Commodore W A D Brook (Air Officer Commanding, Hong Kong).

Group Captain L P Dodds.

Wing Commander Bayley.

Flight Lieutenant Dunn and Warrant Officer Witts of 4857 Quarrying Flight.

This occasion photographed by both RAF and British Army photographers. See related items.