AN AIRCREW MISTOOK METERS FOR FT LEAVING CHINESE AIRSPACE.

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DURING ENRTE DSCNT ON FLT FROM SHANGHAI TO HONG KONG ON A461 BTWN YINGDE (YIN) VOR AND RUMET INTXN; WE RECEIVED DSCNT CLRNC TO CROSS RUMET AT FL130. WE WERE STILL IN CHINESE AIRSPACE BEING CTLED BY A CHINESE CTLR. ALL ALTS PREVIOUSLY HAD BEEN GIVEN IN METERS; INCLUDING THE INITIAL DSCNT CLRNC FROM CRUISE ALT. DUE TO ASSUMING THAT THE XING ALT WOULD BE GIVEN IN METERS AND VERY BROKEN ENGLISH ON THE PART OF THE CHINESE CTLR AND AFTER SEVERAL CALL BACKS FOR CLARIFICATION ON A VERY CONGESTED FREQ WE; THE PIC AND MYSELF; AGREED THAT HE SAID TO CROSS RUMET AT 1300 METERS (4300 FT) VICE FL130 (13000 FT). OUR CALLS TO THE CTLR FOR CLARIFICATION INCLUDED ASKING IF HE MEANT METERS OR FT; BUT ALL WE GOT BACK WAS TO FL130 WHICH WE INTERPRETED TO BE 1300 METERS. DURING THE RAPID DSCNT TO BE AT RUMET BY 4300 FT; WE WERE HANDED OVER TO HONG KONG CTL. DURING OUR INITIAL CALL TO HONG KONG CTL IT BECAME EVIDENT THAT THE DSCNT CLRNC WAS TO FL130; NOT TO 1300 METERS. AT THIS POINT WE WERE DSNDING THROUGH ABOUT 5500 FT AND; AS SOON AS THE ERROR WAS REALIZED; WE STARTED AN IMMEDIATE MAX EFFORT CLB BACK TO FL130. WE INFORMED HONG KONG CTL OF WHAT HAPPENED WHEREUPON THEY INSTRUCTED US TO JUST LEVEL WHERE WE WERE; WHICH PUT US AT ABOUT 12000 FT. THEN ALMOST IMMEDIATELY THE HONG KONG CTLR STARTED US BACK DOWN AGAIN FOR OUR APCH TO HONG KONG. IN ALL OF OUR PREVIOUS FIR XINGS FROM UNITED STATES AIRSPACE TO RUSSIAN AIRSPACE AND THEN FROM RUSSIAN AIRSPACE TO CHINESE AIRSPACE; EACH CTLING AGENCY WAS VERY EXACTING IN GIVING ALT CLRNCS IN THEIR COUNTRY'S STANDARDS RIGHT UP TO THE FIR OF THE ADJOINING COUNTRY. RUMET INTXN IS THE FIR BOUNDARY BTWN CHINA AND HONG KONG. WITH EXPERIENCE ESTABLISHED IN PREVIOUS COUNTRY FIR XINGS; A CONGESTED FREQ AND EXTREME LANGUAGE BARRIER; WE ERRONEOUSLY DSNDED WELL BELOW OUR CLRED ALT. LESSONS LEARNED: 1) KNOW MINIMUM ENRTE ALTS FOR WHERE YOU ARE. 2) EVEN IF YOU DON'T HEAR FT OR METERS ON AN ALT CLRNC; REMEMBER THAT FLT LEVELS IN METERS ARE ALWAYS GIVEN USING 4 NUMERALS AND FLT LEVELS IN FT ARE ALWAYS GIVEN USING 3 NUMERALS.