The flotilla, now under the command of the Chinese Admiral ^{[6] [15]} would no longer be constrained by any act of surrender.

The Fortress HQ War Diary was concealed and brought away.^[52]

  At 07.00 Chan Chak was asked to report to the battle box HQ where he was handed two confidential letters, Chan recorded "I just pocketed the letters and left." He returned for the GOC briefing at 09.00 where he was told that the MTB flotilla was at his disposal when the colony finally surrendered. At 09.30 he recorded "I received a phone call from the battle box telling me that the back office is doing something and the meeting between department heads has been cancelled. Wait for the Governor’s phone call at 3.00pm. At this moment I knew that the future of HK is over."

MTB's 07 & 09 were standing by in Telegraph Bay most of the day, with MTBs 10, 11 & 27 on the South West tip of Ap Lei Chau covering the exit to Aberdeen harbour. When Gandy was signalled to "GO", he chose to ignore the order and continued to maintain watch on the exit from Aberdeen harbour. The crews had their quietest day of the battle and exploited the situation by taking their daily dip. MacEwan who was embedded on MTB 11 recorded "We were indeed so sheltered that, in the afternoon, we managed to have a swim — albeit in somewhat oily water." Admiral Chan Chak and his party who led what was effectively the shadow Government in the Colony had a gentleman's agreement with the British authorities that they would be returned to Free China in the event that the Japanese over-ran the Colony.  

Getting Away from Queens Road Central

At about 15.45 Hrs on 25th December [Christmas Day] Ted Ross a 29 year old Canadian and 37 year old David MacDougall both of the Ministry of Information who had moved their office, along with many others including the Police to the Gloucester Hotel on the corner of Queens Road with Pedder Street, went over the road to the Kings Theatre where the Buick Ted had taken from the car compound was parked.^[29] Mac and Ted had arranged to transport the Admiral and his party to Aberdeen, and were contemplating escaping independently. Meanwhile five staff officers also arrived from Fortress HQ. Major Goring, and Squadron-Leader Oxford, had requested permission to flee the colony rather than surrender. The GOC Major-General Maltby granted them permission and they were to take certain confidential files away. Goring invited Police Super-Intendent Robinson to join them, while Captain's Guest and Macmillan tagged along as they made their way down to Queens Road from the Battle-Box HQ. Ted Ross recorded in a letter to his mother written a few days later "We dashed out onto Queens' Road, where the trusty old Buick was parked just in front of the King's theatre. There we were joined by the party of four official Chinese (they had not contacted the torpedo boat before the surrender, and our hopes rose that perhaps the boat would still be waiting) and five British officers who realised the jig was up and were anxious to attempt the escape with us. There was an RAF Squadron Leader, and Army Major, two Captains and a Captain of Police from India who had been caught in Hong Kong when the trouble started." Macmillan along with Guest went up to Chan’s private office on the fourth floor of the Pedder Building^[6] next to the Gloucester Hotel and collected Admiral Chan and his staff, Colonel S K Yee, Lt-Cmdr Hsu Heng, & Coxswain Yeung ^[30]. Freddie Guest later wrote "Everywhere were signs of cast-off badges of office of all kinds: armbands of all descriptions of volunteer work; A.R.P., Special Police, Ambulance Badges, tin hats by the dozen and plenty of gas masks. The Admiral was in ordinary Chinese clothes and carried a very small holdall with him. Macmillan and myself both still wore British uniform and carried just the few things we had been able to lay our hands on, in our pockets." They came down the stairs and while Henry went round the back to collect a canvas topped Austin he had prepared in the vehicle compound, Chan & Co walked the short distance up to Queens Road and met MacDougall, Ross and the staff officers. ^{[27], [29], [31],} The two cars sped off with Mac leading the way down a deserted Queens Road, almost running down "Two-Gun" Cohen en route, Morris Cohen poked his head in the window and enquired what they were up to, upon being told of the escape plans, he declined a lift saying he would take his chance with the Japanese, and then sauntered off up the road.^{[29] & [30]}

Ted gunned the car and on they drove, past the Queen Mary Hospital. Chan Chak recorded "On the way to Aberdeen we saw all the residents were calm. They did not know that the surrender had already happened. The British army sentries at Queen Mary Hospital were still in position." Unbeknown to them they drove right past two of the MTB's hiding in Telegraph Bay arriving at the deserted Aberdeen Naval Dockyard [now rebuilt as the Aberdeen Centre] at 16:15.

Aberdeen

There they learned that the colony had surrendered, so MacDougall and Ross elected to take their chance with Admiral Chan and party. They found Commander Montague who said that the MTB's had been ordered to go more than an hour previously. He had been overseeing the refloating of the diesel launch C-410 and scuttling of HMS Robin the MTB flotilla's mother ship close by Staunton Creek and advised the party to wait for high tide in about an hour. The party decided they could not wait any longer and would look for another craft. Monty advised them to go out through Aberdeen harbour to the west as it was highly likely the MTB's would be hiding in secluded bays waiting for the sun to set. There were some of HMS Cornflower's officers & crew trying to get the ships 25 foot cabin launch ^[30] known as "Cornflower II" going at the at the wooden pier by the docks,^[19] it had no fuel or battery. Ted asked Monty where they could get some fuel, and along with a rating dashed off to the naval store in the Buick and returned with sixteen gallons of petrol.^[29] The others filled the boat  with canned food, water, and rifles, and using the battery from the Buick they got the engine started. The cars were then abandoned.^[29] Damsgaard started the engine which was loud, "It seemed like the roar of a motorcycle without an exhaust" Guest later wrote. Now numbering sixteen they finally got under way at 16.45 hrs just an hour before sunset on a bright sunny afternoon with flat calm waters. Perfect conditions in normal circumstances only these were far from normal, the Japanese would be able to see them from a long way off.

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