27.
asked the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs whether he will make a full statement on the British contribution to the French and Belgian air rescue mission to Zaire.
The British Government decided to support the operation mounted at Zairian request by the Belgian and French to evacuate expatriates who were in danger in Kolwezi, by the provision of a back-up medical evacuation facility. Accordingly, four RAF aircraft equipped for medical evacuation together with two Army medical teams were sent to Lusaka. This was done with the full agreement of the Zambian Government. In the event, the services of the United Kingdom medical contingent were not required in the evacuation. The aircraft and personnel returned to the United Kingdom as soon as the evacuation was completed.