Government Flying Service (Hong Kong)

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Government Flying Service (GFS) (Chinese: 政府飛行服務隊; pinyin: Xiānggǎng Zhèngfǔ Fēixíng FúWùduì) is the flying-service unit of the Government of Hong Kong. It was established on April 1, 1993, when Hong Kong was under British rule. It then took over all the non-military operations of the Royal Hong Kong Auxiliary Air Force (RHKAAF), which was an auxiliary unit of the United Kingdom Royal Air Force. After Hong Kong was handed over to the People's Republic of China in 1997, the GFS remains as a government unit of the Hong Kong Special administrative region, and is responsible for search and rescue (SAR), air ambulance, firefighting and police operations.

The service operates from the southwestern end of Hong Kong International Airport at Chek Lap Kok. Before the opening of the Chek Lap Kok airport in 1998, it operated from the old Kai Tak Airport (i.e. the former Hong Kong International Airport). GFS patrols a 400 nautical mile radius of the Maritime Rescue and Coordination Centre (MRCC)., as well as the Hong Kong Flight Information Region (FIR), which covers most of the South China Sea basin.

Operations

GFS is broken down to operational sections:

• Operations Section - day-to-day core functions (i.e. Search and Rescue)
• Training and Standards Section - professional standards and development
• Engineering Section - maintenance of GFS equipment
• Quality Section - compliance to operational standards
• Administration Section - administration, human resources, finance, supplies, etc...

Fleet

The fleet currently comprises (Aircraft Registration numbers):

2 BAe Jetstream 41

• B-HRS
• B-HRT

3 Eurocopter Super Puma AS332 L2

• B-HRL
• B-HRM
• B-HRN

4 Eurocopter Dauphin EC155 B1

• B-HRU
• B-HRV
• B-HRW
• B-HRY

A fifth one, B-HRX crashed in a mission in 2003.

Aircraft previously operated include:

• 2 Beech Super King Air - retired 1998 and 1999
• 3 Sikorsky S-70A Black Hawks (B-HZJ, B-HZI, and B-HZK) - retired 2002
• 6 Sikorsky S-76 - retired 2002
• 4 Slingsby T-67M-200 Firefly - retired 1996

Personnel

GFS employes 238 personnel and they are comprised of:

• 178 commissioned/disciplined personnel
• 60 civilian personnel

Most of the pilots in the GFS were localised prior to the handover in 1997, as former RAF and other British military personnel departed Hong Kong.

The GFS is lead by a controller, whom reports to the Secretary for Security. The current controller is Captain BYM Butt.

Other senior officers of the GFS are:

• Department Secretary
• Chief Operations Officer
• Chief Training and Standards Officer
• Manager - Quality Assurance
• Chief Aircraft Engineer

Rank

Ranking of personnel of the GFS are as follows:

• 1 Bauhinia and 1 Laurel Wreath with Crossed Feather
  • Controller
• 1 Bauhinia and 2 Pips
  • Chief Pilot
  • Chief Aircraft Engineer
• 1 Bauhinia and 1 Pip
  • Senior Pilot
  • Senior Aircraft Engineer
  • Senior Aircrewman Officer
• 1 Bauhinia
  • Pilot I
  • Aircraft Engineer
  • Aircrewman Officer I
• 3 Pips
  • Pilot I
  • Aircraft Engineer
  • Aircrewman Officer I
• 2 Pips and 1 Bar
  • Pilot II
  • Aircraft Engineer
  • Aircrewman Officer I
  • Chief Aircraft Technician
• 2 Pips
  • Pilot II
  • Chief Aircraft Technician
  • Senior Aircraft Technician
  • Aircrewman Officer II
  • Aircrewman Officer III
• 1 Pip
  • Cadet Pilot
  • Senior Aircraft Technician
  • Aircraft Technician
  • Aircrewman Officer III

Trivia

• The service's official theme song, Wishing You Well So Much (多想你好), was sung by Andy Lau.
• The TVB drama "Always Ready" has also been film in GFS.

See also

• Hong Kong Police Force
• Hong Kong Auxiliary Police Force
• Hong Kong Fire Services Department
• Hong Kong Customs and Excise Department
• Hong Kong Civil Aid Service

External links

• Government Flying Service official website
• Government Flying Services as described in Hong Kong Yearbook 2002
• Hong Kong Disciplined Services

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