EXERCISE TROPIC MAJOR

SUPPORTING FIJI

DRUG BUSTING

facebook.com/NZNavytwitter.com/NZNavyISSUE 222 JUNE 2018

cover image: maintainers work on a sH2-g(i) seasprite aboard HmnZs weLLington during exercise tropic major.

pHoto: Lac diLLon anderson

CONTENTS NAVY TODAY ISSUE 222 2018

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directorY

Published to inform, inspire and entertain serving and former members of the RNZN, their families and friends and the wider Navy community.

Navy Today is the official magazine of the Royal New Zealand Navy. Published by Defence Public Affairs, Wellington. Navy Today is now in its twenty first year of publication.

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04 TROPIC MAJOR CAPABILITY

14 TAUPO IN FIJI

16 RIMPAC PREVIEW

17 TE MANA GETS READY

22 BRINGING OUR SAILOR HOME

28 MAkING YOUR OWN LUCk

31 SPACE CHALLENGE

33 DONATION TO TONGA

34 TOWER DE FORCE

28 31

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a couple of months back this magazine printed an interview where I discussed my career, and the adventure I have had. When I read it and

reflected upon what I had said, I was acutely aware that an important part of what is important to me was missing – I did not emphasise strongly enough the importance of comradeship and looking out for each other. So, given the privilege of penning this article, I request your indulgence as I set about plugging that gap in outlining some thoughts on comradeship.

Over the last few weeks a number of our shipmates have featured in the media. I love it when sailors feature for good things, and this magazine includes a number of articles reporting the great things our people, YOU, do on behalf of the nation both in New Zealand and overseas. From the Ambae volcano response and Exercise Tropic Major in Vanuatu, through to Operation Wasawasa in Fiji, our ships and people feature as “doers of good” in our neighbourhood.

However, unfortunately, recently there have been a number of instances where negative things have happened involving our people. To be clear, I am not meaning our shipmates have been in the media because they have been naughty. Regrettably they have featured because bad things have happened to them, such as the mugging of two sailors in Noumea.

Sometimes bad things happen to us for reasons that are beyond our control. When this happens, comradeship and the support of mates and whanau is critical to enabling us to manage the negative event and move on positively. Maybe it is a sympathetic listening ear, sometimes it’s moral support, maybe it’s physical support; either way, knowing your comrades are around and ready to help is uplifting and assists in recovery.

Over my career there have been a number of times where mates and their comradeship have helped me through bad events. However, equally important, and perhaps of even greater value, have been the times where mates have proactively assisted me in avoiding bad things. In addition to the numerous times where friends have assisted me to sidestep minor self-induced risk, I can think of three or four critical times where shipmates have gone out of their way to ask questions, guide or challenge me when I have been about to say or do something that had a high chance of having a bad consequence for me, other people or the organisation.

Without going into gory details, comradeship in terms of mates courageously stopping me doing dumb stuff and exposing myself to unnecessary risk has increased my wellbeing and enjoyment many many times over during the course of my career. Similarly, their soft engagement, genuinely querying how things are going, or if they can

help with something, both personal and professional, has lifted my spirits, enthusiasm and commitment on many occasions. And sometimes, I have been challenged to do things that I otherwise might not have pushed myself to do. These instances have occasionally led to great outcomes that otherwise would have been missed.

While no one is accountable for my actions other than me, as comrades my mates have actively taken on the responsibility for assisting me in avoiding bad things and achieving good things. Equally, I see it as my duty to assist my shipmates in avoiding bad things, managing those bad things that can’t be avoided and achieving those good things as the opportunities arise.

In simple terms, I suppose you could say I see comradeship as a professional commitment to assisting shipmates execute their duties as best they can, balanced equally with a personal commitment to assist them in maintaining their health and improving their wellbeing, and that of their whanau.

I thank you all for your comradeship.

Yours aye

Commodore David ProctorDeputy Commander Joint Forces

DEPUTy COMMANDER JOINT FORCESCommodore David Proctor

“ Comradeship is a professional commitment to assisting shipmates.”

YOURS AYE

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TROPIC MAJOR

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8 HOURS TO GO

TROPIC MAJOR The Operations Room on HMNZS CANTERBURY is usually standing room only for the evening’s Commander’s Update Brief. This is especially true for the night of 4 May.

exercise Tropic Major in Vanuatu is only hours away from its zenith, with days of preparation and rehearsal about to culminate in an amphibious

assault against an armed criminal group occupying Epi Island in Vanuatu. This fictitious scenario is the basis of the biggest New Zealand military exercise ever conducted in the South West Pacific, building on Exercise Southern katipo 17 and reinforcing the New Zealand Defence Force’s ability to conduct operations in a tropical environment.

Epi Island is familiar ground for HMNZS CANTERBURY. She was there in 2015 following Tropical Cyclone Pam, which devastated Vanuatu.

There are over 500 personnel involved in Joint Task Force 651, under the command of Captain Garin Golding, the Commander of the Deployable Inter-agency Joint Task Force. He sits at the front of the operations room while representatives of the assembled forces file in. CANTERBURY is the main platform and Command Headquarters, while HMNZS WELLINGTON, containing the divers and hydrographers of HMNZS MATATAUA, lies some distance away. CANTERBURY has embarked the battlefield helicopter group, No. 3 Squadron, with two NH90 helicopters. Army combat engineers and a platoon of infantry from Bravo Company are also among the embarked force. A New Zealand police officer, working with a team of Vanuatu Police, sits in the meeting, plus an adviser from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Unlike a news bulletin, the weather report comes first. Things are looking okay – a sea state of 2+, with a 1.5m swell and a southerly. “The moon rises at 2050,” says Lieutenant Commander Bronwyn Heslop, the meterological officer. “The moon will be behind you.” This could be a mixed blessing for the zodiac crews, due to infiltrate in the early hours. “Stay low and slow, to reduce your profile, reduce the silver trail.”

The team refresh their knowledge of the Opposing Force. The main actors in the criminal group have impressive resumes. Objective Gold is Salmai, the group’s leader. He’s an experienced former infantry officer turned international arms trader with a sideline in drug running. Intelligence marks him as narcissistic and irrational – not a good combination. Objective Silver, Le Roux, is an ex-Navy combat diver, with experience in designing maritime mines. He’s mined one of the bays in Epi Island. There are also six ambitious local supporters and a network of paid informants. According to a hidden reconnaissance team, the criminals – who wear yellow bandanas as a mark of identification – are armed with Steyrs.

The two local police officers on the island have been out of their depth for days, but have been left alone as long as they don’t try anything. One man, the deputy director of Epi High School, has been shot and killed during an altercation, and two church workers have been taken hostage. Locals have been harassed and menaced, to emphasise who is in control. It is beyond the Government of Vanuatu to handle, and New Zealand’s help has been requested.

by andrew bonallack

TROPIC MAJOR

6

The assault starts at 0430, with combat engineers and infantry in zodiacs going into a quiet bay – low and slow – to secure a southern beachhead and make it safe for CANTERBURY’s Landing Craft to start deploying troops, vehicles and the Vanuatu Police to shore. HMNZS MATATAUA’s hydrographers have previously surveyed the bay and the divers have dealt to the mines. The mines’ architect, Le Roux, has been caught – an early bonus for the Advance Force. He is later handed over to Vanuatu Police and arrested.

The main objective is the village of Lamen Bay to the north, which contains Epi High School, an airfield and several guest houses, where the criminal leaders have been staying. An NH90 helicopter has made a lot of noise in an approach from the north, as a feint to cue the enemy that way and hopefully give Bravo Company more time. With Bravo Company soldiers and Pinzgauer troop transport vehicles now ashore, the amphibious force advances via a tortuous up-and-down road to Lamen Bay. It means a house-to-house search for the police, with the soldiers silently ringing each house, looking in every direction. The setting is idyllic, practically a golden-sands paradise, with soldiers quietly positioned among the trees. The locals are fascinated and pull out phones to take photos.

One local recognises a picture the police show him and points to a house. Police search and find evidence the criminals have been there. Slowly, the soliders and police proceed north. Gunfire, like popping firecrackers, turns everyone’s head. The soldiers are already running towards the airfield.

Suddenly everything seems very close, as an exchange of fire ensues between the criminals and soldiers. Someone among the criminals has done a bit of thinking, setting up a makeshift gun emplacement at the end of the airfield. While other criminal members are scattered, three gang members, wearing yellow bandanas, are armed with Steyrs and hold their emplacement grimly.

Green smoke drifts across the grass. By now hundreds of villagers, including children, have come to watch, inching closer along the road or wandering along the beach to get a better views. Isabella Donald, a woman’s rights adviser, says people from other side of the island have come to see the action. “People are eager to see it. We told the children to be curious and watch, there would be bangs, loud noises, good guys and bad guys. They have seen videos, but they wanted to see the real things with their eyes.”

In the emplacement, two of the criminals have been hit. Suddenly the New Zealand soldiers appear to fall back, sprinting away. The remaining gang member, confused and undecided, stands to look and is hit by sniper fire.

Exercise controller Lieutenant Colonel Martin Dransfield says the intense, 12-hour operation is the first of its kind and tests a whole series of capability. “The rules of engagement were if they come out firing, our forces can engage.” The leader, Salmai, has been scripted to escape to a southern village, Sara, requiring a team to go in and capture him.

“There’s a lot of moving parts in this exercise. It’s completely Joint Forces, with landing craft, NH90s, infantry, engineers, boat teams, with Command HQ on CANTERBURY. It’s all the force elements, all working together.”

He designed it to be challenging. “There’s a lot of problem-solving. And there’s nothing on the island to sustain you, so you have to sustain yourselves – the local community only has enough for themselves.” Tropic Major, if done again, would occur in alternate years to Exercise Southern katipo, he says. “This is about embarking a large force, doing things we don’t get to do in New Zealand. We’re working in a tropical climate system, on an island, with our Pacific neighbours. Do we want to continue doing this? My assessment is that we do. This brings us closer to our aspiration to be an Integrated Defence Force.”

D-DAy

REFLECTION

TROPIC MAJOR

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NZDF DELIVERS AID FOR VANUATU’S VOLCANO EVACUEES

HMNZS CANTERBURY contributed towards the delivery of 23 tonnes of emergency supplies for Vanuatu’s volcano evacuees in response to a request from their government.

CANTERBURY delivered around 11 tonnes of supplies to Vanuatu’s main logistics hub in Luganville on Espiritu Santo Island, prior to Exercise Tropic Major. The stores came from the emergency stores of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

On the 45 pallets of stores delivered to Luganville Wharf were 12 pallets of water, three pallets of canned food, 14 pallets of bagged rice, 50 6000-litre water tanks, complete with piping, and three pallets of rain harvesting kits.

The delivery was Part 2 of MFAT’s response to Vanuatu, with Part 1 being an earlier airlift of 11 tonnes of supplies by the Royal New Zealand Air Force.

12 pallets of water

3 pallets of canned food

14 pallets of bagged rice

50 6000-litre water tanks

3 pallets of rain harvesting kits

8

tropic Major reinforced No. 3 Squadron’s role as a battlefield helicopter squadron, says its Commanding Officer, but also allowed the

Squadron to develop a close relationship with HMNZS CANTERBURY.

“This was an important exercise for us, and it’s been very successful,” says Wing Commander Mike Cannon. “The top priority for No. 3 Squadron was Directed Level of Capability (DLOC) training in a tropical environment. That’s the sort of base level training that we are supposed to be at, given that the Pacific is No. 3’s backyard, and has been for a while.”

NH90 operations from CANTERBURY are still in their infancy and No. 3 Squadron were keen to practise serials that had not been done before. “Ship-controlled approaches, and low visibility approaches, for bad weather and night-time landings. On the ship, the helicopter air controller holds the aircraft on radar and talks you around the approach profile, lining you up with the ship. It’s like flying a normal instrument approach back home, but doing it with a ship.”

“OUR” HELICOPTERS ON NAVy SHIPS

It is important to get experience in the tropics, he says. “It’s essentially environmental, training in atmosphere you don’t normally experience.” High temperatures and high humidity affects the density of the air, essentially meaning the aircraft is less efficient at high level, requiring more power.

“This is very early on the road to embarked capability,” says WGCDR Cannon. “This is the time for us to get used to the Navy, and for them to get used to us. We’re only just started on this journey. Other countries, like the Australian Defence Force, are very well established.”

Building the “fantastic” relationship with CANTERBURY is a great outcome, he says. “We are very similar. We are true joint force elements, pulled in many directions.” He did notice a greater familiarity from CANTERBURY’s Ship’s Company on this exercise, building on the work of Southern katipo 17. “Our relationship has gone from strength to strength. When we were coming on CANTERBURY, a sit rep was piped, and the Petty Officer said ‘Our NH90’. We felt the ship had accepted us. That’s a combat indicator, where the crew feel some sense of belonging to the ship.”

Wing Commander Mike Cannon

An NH90 helicopter touches down on HMNZS Canterbury during Exercise Tropic Major.

TROPIC MAJOR

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SURGICAL TEAM AT THE READy

For the first time, the New Zealand Defence Force is fully capable of performing operations and trauma care on a Royal New Zealand Navy ship, with a

hospital operating theatre, intensive care unit, x-ray and ultra-sound facilities, and blood bank.

Exercise Tropic Major used multi-role vessel HMNZS CANTERBURY’s ability to deploy a Maritime Role 2 medical capability, with a team of 21 medical personnel that included a surgeon, anaesthetist, nurses, medics and a medical scientist.

MR2 Officer in Charge Major Bronny Clulow, a registered nurse, has often set up land-based field hospitals, but this is the first time HMNZS CANTERBURY’s operating theatre and laboratory have been fully operational.

“We have an Emergency Operating Suite with two intensive care beds, two resuscitation beds, and five inpatient medium to high dependency beds.”

During routine sailing the hospital is not staffed, but in the event of a specific deployment the Role 2 team from the Deployable Health Organisation is required to deploy, providing the clinical staff and medical supplies. Staff are a mix of regular force and reservists.

The requirement for MR2 to deploy on Tropic Major was driven by an assessment by exercise planners. “They decided that there was too much of a time delay to surgery if someone was to sustain a life-threatening injury, therefore MR2 was needed. It is the first time it has done so to provide real-time support.”

Role 0, she explains, is buddy aid, in the field. Role 1 is treatment by a medic. Role 2 involves surgical intervention, with intensive care. “But we would want to get them off the ship in 12 to 24 hours. It’s life or limb-saving surgery, and even some neurology, such as relieving pressure on the brain.

This is her first year of OIC of theatre for R2. “This is really good, and gives us a high level of reassurance that we are good to go, if presented with a patient.”

two reservists have discovered their medical special-ties are sought-after commodities for the Royal New Zealand Navy’s newest hospital on the seas.

Captain Sophie Nightingale is a general surgeon in two hospitals in Melbourne, sub-specialising in breast cancer, while Captain Nic Smith works as an anaesthetist at Wellington Regional Hospital. The doctors are the key element in a 21-strong medical team staffing HMNZS CANTERBURY’s Maritime Role 2 hospital.

Captain Nightingale applied to the Territorial Forces during her first year in medical school in Auckland, 17 years ago, attracted to the physical challenges of being a reservist. As a surgeon, she was impressed at what CANTERBURY offered in the way of trauma care.

“I think this is pretty incredible, to be honest – it’s a great achievement to have this on board,” she said. “There’s so much behind the scenes with surgery, and it’s all here.

“I hope we don’t have any real-time incidents, but if we do I know we have all the equipment here. We can look after patients, not only for surgery, but after surgery – that’s just as important.”

Captain Smith originally came to New Zealand from the United kingdom as a doctor. She met Major Simon Ainsworth, the Commanding Officer of Role 2, who knew she was “pretty outdoorsy” and fit, she says. “He saw my skill set, and he was trying to build the Role 2 capability.”

Initially Captain Smith was not sure how she would fit in. “I was mostly driven by my own motivation,” she says. “I have really been welcomed into New Zealand, and I wanted to give something back. It’s building capability to support the Defence Force out in the middle of nowhere.”

She says it was amazing to see the Role 2 suite on CANTERBURY. “It’s amazing to see it work, and I’m really impressed at how the team has worked together. All the planning, all the tools, and we bring it through and make it work. It’s a testament to the whole Maritime Role 2.”

SURGICAL TEAM AT THE READy

NAVy’S HOSPITAL ON THE SEAS

TROPIC MAJOR 9

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ADVANCE FORCE MAPS THE WAy

the first taste of danger happens at night-time, in complete blackness. There’s no electricity on Epi Island, no street lights. There’s nothing to signal

to the enemy that a team of Navy specialists is steadily unpicking your defences, and mapping the route ashore for the main force to strike.

Sixteen persons from the Clearance Dive Group and Maritime Hydrographic Group (Team 2) of HMNZS MATATAUA embarked with HMNZS WELLINGTON as the Advance Force element of Exercise Tropic Major. WELLINGTON approached Epi Island after dark, inserting beach survey teams to establish an accurate subsurface picture of the beaches and suitable landing sites, and staying nearby on patrol. Before dawn the divers were retrieved, and WELLINGTON retreated out of sight of the island. It was a pattern repeated over three nights, with divers being deployed to dispose of Maritime Improvised Explosive Devices.

Lieutenant Sam Crone, HMNZS MATATAUA, says in a real-time operation WELLINGTON would be three to five days ahead of CANTERBURY, carrying out their work without the enemy being aware. “The idea with doing this at night is about using divers with very shallow water dive equipment, getting in undetected, plus inserting the survey team, undetected.” There is no light, he says. “And you can’t have any light.”

Their work was a success, he says. “We were there to prove several different aspects. We’re doing very shallow diving, using a shallow water rebreather. We also set up an advance force staff element, which allowed us to be able to coordinate the teams, and be part of the Joint Force planning.” Like other elements of the Defence Force, it was a chance to practise in the tropics, notably with hazards like coral. There was also a very slight possibility of encountering a crocodile.

The success is a key building block towards a lead role in high level mine countermeasures exercises in San Diego this year, during Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC).

Both teams were rotated and changed, with HMNZS MATATAUA repeating their beach survey role for Exercise Croix Du Sud, a humanitarian aid and disaster relief exercise which followed.

As well as being the support platform for MATATAUA, WELLINGTON was able to spend the daylight hours training at “wet winching” divers from the sea using the embarked Seasprite SH-2G(I) helicopter, plus maintenance on the ship’s sensors and systems.

TROPIC MAJOR

“ The idea with doing this at night is about using divers with very shallow water dive equipment, getting in undetected, plus inserting the survey team, undetected.”Lieutenant Sam Crone

11

WINNING HEARTS AND MINDS

JOINT FORCES’ KAPA HAKA

key Leadership Engagement (kLE) is a fundamental aspect of winning the trust and respect of the populace during a military operation or exercise.

That’s because even with the best intentions in the world, a populace already disrupted by armed criminal activity is going to feel unsettled and cautious about a military force arriving on their island.

With Exercise Tropic Major playing out a scenario of engaging and subduing an armed criminal group, reassurance was the natural next step for Commander Joint Task Force 651 Captain Garin Golding and his Deputy Commander, Lieutenant Colonel Matt Crow. The pair, plus other members of JTF 651, visited the various chiefs and villages throughout the island, to pay their respects, thank them for their help, and explain what the New Zealand Defence Force was doing on Epi Island.

The engagement culminated in a farewell ceremony at Lamen Bay village, with the island’s high chief and

How long does it take to work up a top-notch kapa haka group? In the case of Exercise Tropic Major, it took a group of volunteers about two weeks

enroute and during the exercise.

Leading Electronic Technician Codi Wehi-Ngatai rehearsed a core group of HMNZS CANTERBURY Ship’s Company plus interested persons from the Embarked Force, including a number from the medical staff. It was all in aid of a three-part performance for the farewell ceremony on Epi Island. The group performed How Great Thou Art, the NZDF Haka, and Tu Tira.

“We practised about three times a week in our own time, and I’m really happy with it turned out,” said LET Wehi-Ngatai. “I think the locals appreciated that cultural interaction, and it was very fitting, for the closing ceremony, to represent our culture.” He noted the locals performed their own song, in reciprocation.

Sub Lieutenant Erica Williams, who was part of the group, said people can be shy about joining in. “People told me they come along to these classes because they are fun. It’s relaxing to sing and dance, take the foot of the gas – and it was a chance to go ashore.”

assembled chiefs gathered with villagers to farewell the Joint Task Force with prayer, song and food.

Deputy Commander Joint Forces New Zealand, Commodore David Proctor said when it came to defining an Integrated Defence Force, this exercise was on the front edge of it. “We are always training to do better, and training in the tropics is pretty special. It’s a different environment, it gets us to test our logistics, our capability. It’s a great opportunity, and it makes it easier for us to do this in future.”

Jonathan Schwass, the New Zealand High Commissioner to Vanuatu, said this was “one bigfulla exercise”, and an important one for the New Zealand Government. “Our Defence Force needs to be able to train, to support countries that might ask for help. And if we are to respond well, we need a Defence Force that knows the Pacific context, that knows how to operate in these environments. I salute your skills, your dedication to your task, and your ability to work alongside people of different cultures.”

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DEVONPORT IS OUR HOMEThe Chief of Navy has described the flurry of media stories last month regarding the future of Devonport Navy Base as “speculation and incorrect” for the most part.

the Coalition Agreement between the Labour Party and New Zealand First requires a commissioning of a feasibility

study on the options for moving the Ports of Auckland. Rear Admiral John Martin says the New Zealand Defence Force has sought input into that study, as there are specific operating matters to consider for the operation of a Naval base. “Further to this study, in February 2018 the New Zealand Defence Force initiated a feasibility study examining the long-term future of Auckland’s Devonport Naval Base.”

He says there have been numerous studies since the 1990s on the future of Devonport Naval Base. “In general the reports conclude that while relocation has been technically feasible, the reasons to consider moving the base have not been strong enough to enact the change or to be economically feasible.” The current study will provide the New Zealand Defence Force with up-to-date information to consider future options to support key maritime and Defence outputs, and their high level costs in order to inform future investment in the Defence Estate.

“Devonport Naval Base is an extremely important part of our Navy. The NZDF will continue to invest in the Naval Base, in its current Devonport location, to ensure that we have up-to-date and fit for purpose facilities for our personnel that allow us to be a world-class Navy. Devonport Naval Base remains the home of our Navy, and will be so for the foreseeable future.”

RE-CREATING HISTORyThe presence on HMNZS CANTERBURY of Captain Garin Golding, Commander JTF 651, provided a light-hearted opportunity to recreate another CANTERBURY moment with the Ship’s Commanding Officer, Commander Matt Wray.

In another time, on another CANTERBURY, Lieutenant “Gaz” Golding and Leading Hydrographic Assistant Matt “Sting” Wray made up the Navigation Department of F421. In a ship’s-own published book of its deployment in 1993, the pair are described as having to “beg, borrow or steal” enough navigation charts to navigate CANTERBURY around the world. The deployment included Canada, Ireland, Egypt and Canada, plus England as part of the 50th anniversary of the Battle of the Atlantic.

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TROPIC MAJOR

13

CAPTAIN TAKES ANTI-PIRACy LEAD

NEW CHIEF OF DEFENCE FORCEthe Government has appointed the current Vice Chief of

Defence Force, Air Vice-Marshal kevin Short, as the new Chief of Defence Force. He will begin his role on 1 July for a

three-year term, taking over from Lieutenant General Tim keating.

AVM Short has been Vice Chief of Defence Force since March 2014. Born in Feilding, he started his career in the Royal New Zealand Air Force in 1976 as a General Duties Navigator. In his early career he served with No. 5 Squadron as Navigator, Tactical Coordinator and Aircraft Captain, accumulating over 5,000 hours on the P-3k2 Orion. At a senior level he initiated several major projects including the upgrades to the C130 Hercules and Orion aircraft, and the purchase of the Boeing 757s. He has previously been the Deputy Chief of Air Force and Commander Joint Forces New Zealand.

“Living the values of the organisation is very important. The Defence Force is a proud organisation with a long history of service to the country.

“I am looking forward to the release of the Strategic Defence Policy Statement, which will update the direction of the Defence Force, and the follow-on Defence Capability Plan Review.

“The role of Chief of Defence Force is challenging, and I welcome that challenge, as well as working to ensure we continue to uphold our values of courage, commitment and comradeship as we go about our task of serving New Zealand.”

“ It’s a privilege and honour to be appointed to this role. The stewardship of this organisation is an extremely important responsibility.”Air Vice-Marshal kevin Short

captain Richard Walker has been appointed as Deputy Commander of Combined Task Force 150, one of three task forces that comprise the Combined

Maritime Forces (CMF), for the next three months.

The CMF is a 32-nation naval partnership which seeks to combat terrorism, prevent piracy, encourage regional cooperation and promote a safe maritime environment. It conducts maritime security operations across about 8.2 million square kilometres of international water.

CTF150’s role is to disrupt terrorist organisations and their illegal activities in this area.

In his new role CAPT Walker will help supervise operations that cover some of the world’s busiest shipping lanes spanning the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, the western half of the Indian Ocean and Gulf of Oman.

“The training and experience that you receive throughout a career in the Royal New Zealand Navy is second to none,” he said. “You are developed, both professionally and personally, while at the same time doing roles that are challenging and include a large element of adventure.”

He said he was looking forward to representing New Zealand in the CTF150. “I believe that for any problem, if enough people or countries contribute to the solution, the net impact can be a large positive change.

14

For the second year running, the Royal New Zealand Navy is supporting Fiji in a period of maritime patrols of its Exclusive Economic Zone.

HMNZS TAUPO departed Devonport on 21 May to spend the next three months conducting compliance monitoring of fishing vessels around Fiji. The mission, with support from the Ministry for Primary Industries, will include two Fishery Officers from MPI to assist in boarding and inspection of vessels. HMNZS OTAGO will follow after TAUPO with a further month of patrols.

Lieutenant Ben Flight, the Commanding Officer of TAUPO, said the entire crew was looking forward to working with their Fijian counterparts “and build on the good work that was achieved last year”.

Last year HMNZS HAWEA spent seven months in Fiji, requiring a crew swap and Change of Command half way through.

HAWEA completed 13 combined fisheries and customs patrols, each patrol about a week long. They inspected 550 vessels and detected 100 alleged infringements. About 60 per cent of infringements were considered major, including fishing without a licence, dumping rubbish at sea, lack of work permits and safety infringements such as not holding master’s licences, or life jackets.

TAUPO’s deployment is also an opportunity for training. Last year 50 Fiji Navy sailors, 27 Customs Officers and 19 Fishery Officers received training on HAWEA. On each patrol, up to four Royal Fijian Navy sailors would join the crew, passing on their knowledge of Fijian waters, reef navigation and local culture.

Captain Dave McEwan, the Maritime Component Commander, said learning was a two-way process and the New Zealand sailors learnt as much from their Fiji Navy partners.

“We hope to replicate the success of last year’s combined patrols and contribute to Fiji’s maritime security,” he said.

Fiji authorities appreciate the NZDF’s continued maritime patrol support, Mr Semi koroilavesau, the Fiji Minister for Fisheries, said.

“The Government of Fiji has demonstrated a strong commitment to strengthening the management of our fishery resources for the benefit of the people of Fiji. The support of New Zealand, through the NZDF, and the collaboration with our partner-agencies such as the Fiji Navy contribute greatly to the Government achieving this goal,” Minister koroilavesau said.

FIJI SUPPORIN MARITIME PATROLS

The crew of HMNZS TAUPO pose for a group photo before departing Devonport.

FIJI SUPPORTED IN MARITIME PATROLS

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as an island nation, water looms large for New Zealand on the security front. Climate change, drug trafficking and countries competing for influence were among the concerns raised at a conference to discuss threats in our maritime environment.

opening the Centre for Strategic Studies’ conference on our maritime security environment, Chief of Navy Rear Admiral John Martin likened New

Zealand to a body with its organs on the outside.

“The circulatory system is not sitting in the fluids of the body but in the fluids of the Pacific, and we don’t understand that as a country.”

New Zealanders don’t fully understand the importance of the water around us when it comes to trade and security, RADM Martin said, a sentiment echoed by other experts at the Victoria University event.

Climate change loomed large on the agenda, with RADM Martin citing the increased frequency of severe weather events having “the most lasting and visible impact on our region’s ability to respond to security challenges”.

RADM Martin also pointed to the threat posed by growth in drug trafficking, as did Commodore Stephen Woodall, the Australian Navy’s assistant secretary for the Pacific and Timor-Leste.

“Worryingly, we don’t know what percentage of the trade isn’t being found,” CDRE Woodall said.

Jamie Bamford, NZ Customs’ intelligence, investigations and enforcement group manager, said there had been significant changes to trafficking activity in recent years.

Mr Bamford said that was fuelled in part by the record prices that kiwis paid for narcotics: a kilogram of methamphetamine had a wholesale price of about $6000 in the United States, but up to $500,000 in New Zealand, making the latter a far more appealing destination for traffickers.

The country was being targeted by Asian organised crime networks, but there had been a recent “explosion” in regional activity from South American and Mexican cartels.

Water, Water everyWhere:

NZ’S MARITIME SECURITy THREATS

Mr Bamford said adapted fishing vessels were being used to bring narcotics to the Pacific from Asia and other areas, with New Zealand’s geographical isolation no longer the barrier it once was.

“We are no longer immune – distance is no longer our friend.”

Another problem was what he called “grey areas” regarding New Zealand’s ability to make arrests in offshore waters.

Customs was seeking to address that with a draft bill extending maritime powers, allowing authorities to stop, board, search or seize vessels in international waters if they had reason to suspect they were carrying drugs – something they can now only do out to 24 nautical miles.

Then there are the threats posed by competing countries, with RADM Martin referring to “crowbar diplomacy” in nearby Pacific islands as new relationships are developed.

RADM Martin also expressed concern about Antarctica, saying the white expanse had become a “new grey space” with some countries seeming to attach less value to the Antarctic Treaty System than others.

Ministry of Transport chief executive Peter Mersi, who chairs the Government’s inter-agency maritime oversight committee, said New Zealand could look to space-based and autonomous systems to improve its surveillance.

Ministry of Defence deputy secretary Tony Lynch said New Zealand needed greater defence engagement and continued investment in maritime capabilities – although he nodded to the Government’s current budget pressures, saying the ministry was aware of “domestic challenges in what is a tight fiscal environment”.

As RADM Martin noted, maintaining a sense of sea blindness is not an option.

“We’ve got the fourth-largest EEZ whether we like it or not, and if we don’t look after it someone else is going to take it.”

By Sam Sachdeva

Newsroom.co.nz

Reprinted with permission

“ We are no longer immune – distance is no longer our friend.”

NZ’S MARITIME SECURITY THREATS

RADM John Martin, Chief of Navy, opens the Centre for Strategic Studies’ conference at Victoria University.

Published with permission from newsroom.co.nz

16

a senior RNZN officer will command a task group of 11 ships during July’s Exercise Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC), the world’s largest maritime exercise.

captain Blair Gerritsen will be the Sea Combat Commander leading a task group of 11 destroyers and frigates from eight navies to fight the air,

surface and sub surface battles to assure the security of an amphibious task force.

Exercise RIMPAC, held every two years, involves 26 nations, 47 surface ships, five submarines, 18 national land forces, and more than 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel, in and around the Hawaiian Islands and Southern California.

New Zealand’s participation includes frigate HMNZS TE MANA, specialist divers from HMNZS MATATAUA, two Royal New Zealand Air Force P-3k2 Orion aircraft, and Command Task Group 176.3 with a Sea Combat Commander and staff on board HMAS ADELAIDE. About 308 NZDF personnel will participate, ranging from diving and salvage operations to maritime security operations and complex war fighting.

A detachment of divers and mine countermeasures teams will travel to San Diego to participate in amphibious operations there.

A “robust gathering of allies and partners” is how CAPT Gerritsen describes the build-up and participation in RIMPAC. “This allows nations and forces the ability to exercise a wide range of capabilities,” he says. “This ranges from disaster relief and maritime security operations to sea control and complex warfighting.

“About 70 percent of the world is water, 80 percent of the world’s population lives on or near the sea, and 90 percent of world trade travels by sea. Capable maritime forces help ensure stability and prosperity around the world, and RIMPAC helps participating nations develop these capabilities,” says CAPT Gerritsen.

HMNZ Ships CANTERBURY and WELLINGTON joined Australia in the French-led disaster response

exercise Croix du Sud, based in New Caledonia last month.

They joined HMA Ships CHOULES, GASCOYNE and YARRA and French Ship D’ENTRECASTEAU for what is the largest humanitarian aid and disaster relief training exercise in the South Pacific. Croix du Sud occurs every two years.

The exercise is themed around a scenario of a region in chaos following a tsunami, with government instability and the rise of militia factions. A coalition of 10 nations conducts landing exercises, subduing unrest and providing stability, as well humanitarian tasks.

WELLINGTON repeated its Exercise Tropic Major Advance Force role of “clearing the way”, using a changed-out team of divers and hydrographers from HMNZS MATATAUA to survey the littoral waters and beachline in preparation for landing craft operations.

CANTERBURY conducted integration training with the other nations involved, living up to its role as a “host ship”. CANTERBURY hosted troops, vehicles, aircraft and aircrew, delivering them to their area of operations. In addition to traditional Naval functions, CANTERBURY provided the landing platform for French and NZDF soldiers as well as Air Mobile operations using their two embarked RNZAF NH90 Helicopters. “HMNZS CANTERBURY played a crucial role in the completion of Exercise Croix du Sud, achieving training objectives and developing whole ship capabilities,” said Commander Matt Wray, Commanding Officer of CANTERBURY.

SEA COMBAT COMMAND AT RIMPAC

BRINGING ORDER TO CHAOS

RIMPAC

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There’s a lot of preparation and training necessary to get a ship ready for a major deployment – especially when your ship is the leading edge of the Navy’s combat culture.

at time of publication, HMNZS TE MANA will have departed on 11 June for Exercise RIMPAC in Hawaii, plus a south-east Asia deployment involving several

exercises and diplomatic visits.

An example of a busy week for a pre-deployment frigate starts with an ammunitioning evolution. This ship was berthed successfully at kauri Point by the Executive Officer in challenging weather conditions before sailing at dusk to proceed out into the local areas to conduct various Sea Acceptance Trials to prove the maintenance package successful. This included a CIWS Close-In Weapons System firing to calibrate the equipment.

TE MANA also re-familiarised herself with having a Seasprite SH2-G(I) helicopter embarked, including the Air Force personnel that come with it. Not only did TE MANA achieve re-familiarisation, but she also had two firsts with a helicopter this year: her first FWD VERTREP – where a helicopter loads an item from the foc’sle of the ship; and her first Helicopter In Flight Refuel (HIFR) – where a helicopter can be refuelled while still in the air. A VERTREP allows for transfer of stores if the flight deck is compromised or if heavy stores need to be delivered to the forward part of ship. The second evolution, the HIFR, allows New Zealand to assist allies with refuelling helicopters that are larger than permissible to land on the flight deck, or if a helicopter is already on the flight deck.

HMNZS TE MANA isn’t all about work though. Organised by ACWS kahu Rapana, a delicious morning tea was held to collect funds for Breast Cancer Research through the Pink Ribbon Breakfast initiative. All in all TE MANA raised $560. TE MANA also hosted two Navy Museum visitors, to see how the Navy really works.

TE MANA GETS READy

TE MANA GETS READY

18

getting to know our senior officers: commodore jim gilmour, chief of performance, strategy and governance reflects on his career.

i was a directionless kind of teenager. Living with my father in Blenheim, but having spent most of my life before 14 being raised in Devonport Auckland, I missed the beaches

and friends. I was a smart enough young man – but with a lazy, just-enough attitude which was reflected in uninspiring, adequate, school results.

I was simply marking time at school and honestly had no clue what I wanted to do when I left.

As I ambled through the 6th form at Marlborough Boys College, I watched my friends leaving school one by one to scrub cutting, vineyard labouring and the like.

It was against this backdrop that an opportunity to avoid a maths period presented itself. The Navy recruiter would be peddling his wares in the AV room. I had no intention of joining the Navy, nor really making any kind of forward-thinking decision on my life.

It was while I was sitting in the AV room listening to this old grizzly recruiter that I had an epiphany. The Navy does its training in Devonport, I would like to get back to Devonport, this will get me there for free and pay me while I considered what I might do next. Surprisingly, my initial testing indicated that I might have the intellectual goods to be an officer.

I was excited about getting free travel to Auckland and was happy to put five days into a selection board if that was what it took. Not surprisingly with this attitude, I was not successful at this board and while I was advised that there was potential there, I had some maturing to do and more importantly, I had to want it. What they did offer though, was an opportunity to join the Navy as a sailor commencing the following February.

For me this was a no-brainer. I had no idea what I was going to do for a job when school finished in two-and-a-half months. Here was a job. I could get back to Devonport and work it out from there.

What I did not, and could not, know at that time when I decided to join the Navy (as I had considered no other options), is that I would become an officer after one year. Within six years, I would have qualified as a bridge watchkeeping officer, qualified as a helicopter approach controller, qualified as a ship’s navigating officer, navigated the frigate WAIkATO throughout a deployment to Japan and korea. I would have been selected for pilot training and gained my wings, finished my rotary wing conversion and would be flying Iroquois helicopters for the Royal New Zealand Air Force’s No. 3 Squadron.

The Navy not only sorted me out from a maturity perspective but also taught me the most valuable lesson possible – that

A LIFE LESS ORDINARy

nothing is impossible if you apply yourself. This reality creates another equally important foundation to success – self-belief. I clearly recall being mustered with my classmates as an ordinary communications rating in my first couple of months in the Navy. We were gathered around a Huey helicopter on what was essentially the front lawn of the Naval Base in Auckland, now occupied by the Maritime Warfare Training Centre. We were being briefed by the crew on winching procedures in preparation for survival training over the following couple of days.

This day was a watershed for me personally. I couldn’t sleep that night, mostly because I was soaking wet and in a life raft but also as I reflected on what a surreal experience it is being hoisted into a hovering helicopter. But more importantly for me, I was struck by the fact the aircraft captain looked like he was 14. I thought, if this guy could do this, why can’t I? So I needed a plan. I simply had to become an officer, get my bridge watchkeeping certificate, be selected for the aircrew selection board, pass it, successfully pass the wings course, rotary wing conversion and Iroquois conversion course.

It was at this point I started to consider how tragic the time I had squandered at school was, and in particular, I wished I had paid attention during maths and physics.

I owe a debt of gratitude to the Navy’s education department for their help, as I ticked off the each of the milestones towards my goal of becoming a pilot.

I spent the next 13 years progressing through the military aviation organisation. Being flight commander of HMNZS WELLINGTON in the Persian Gulf in 1995 was a highlight, as was completion of my flying instructor’s course in 1996. A two-year exchange posting to the Royal Australian Navy’s 723 Squadron in Nowra in the late nineties immediately preceded an amazing time for flying in our Navy.

I was privileged to be commanding officer of the Naval Support Squadron during the introduction to service of the Super Seasprite Helicopter. Prior to the first machines arriving in NZ, the project team needed an subject matter expert to witness the Maverick missile testing in Yuma, Arizona. It was a tough assignment and when kaman Aerospace representatives approached me to say they were having trouble crewing the aircraft for the return journey to Connecticut and would I be available to help out – I couldn’t get on the phone fast enough to get my helmet in a courier box from NZ. A five-day trip across the US from west to east including flying up New York’s Hudson River past the Twin Towers. I recall getting slightly in the crap for flying through the NY traffic zone because technically the aircraft was experimental, but playing the ignorant kiwi calmed the US Air Traffic Controller down.

There are times during an aviation career where you think that you will not be able to survive without flying, and this was

A LIFE LESS ORDINARY

19

true for me also. When the inevitable time came where I had completed my tour as Commanding Officer No. 6 Squadron and it was time for the first desk job in my career, there was potential for a feeling of being adrift. While I felt an urge to continue flying, to do this I would need to leave the Navy (either to the Air Force or to a civilian flying job). I resisted this as I was keen for my son Tom to have some stability in his schooling and I was keen for my wife to be able to pursue her career.

Perhaps the third best decision of my life was to move to Wellington and assume the duties of Director of Naval Aviation and Director of Naval Capability Requirements in 2003. I was able to make a strategic contribution to where the Navy and NZDF were heading – it was an extremely satisfying experience. It also gave me almost daily access to the Chief of Navy and this allowed me to start an information campaign on him, which was essentially this:

The Navy is shortly to receive the Multi-Role Vessel CANTERBURY, the first Commanding Officer has been selected and I should be the second one.” I assumed Command of HMZS CANTERBURY in November 2008.

The period in command of CANTERBURY was one of the most challenging and rewarding in my career to date. To put her to work in response to the Samoan and Tongan Tsunami disaster in 2009 was a culmination of all that we as a Defence Force had been planning for. We were the first choice response for the Government of New Zealand when our Pacific neighbours needed us most.

Early in 2011, I had CANTERBURY alongside in Napier in support of the Art Deco Weekend. At the tail end of the Art Deco weekend is a commemoration ceremony in remembrance of the devastating earthquake that struck the Napier region in 1931, which involves ringing the Veronica Bell. HMS VERONICA, a frigate in the New Zealand squadron, was alongside in Napier when the earthquake struck, and the ship and its company were pivotal in the immediate response to the city.

Her bell was gifted to Napier upon her decommissioning and is poignantly rung each year on the anniversary of the disaster.

It was an event that struck a chord with me. It was therefore with a feeling of disbelief that as I stood on CANTERBURY’s bridge alongside in Lyttelton, when shortly before not two days later, the ship began to shake violently.

We were substantially loaded with Army vehicles and were crane-loading the last four Light Armoured Vehicles (LAVs) with the intention of departing by 1400. I initially thought that perhaps an internal cause such as a crane malfunction was causing the violent shaking. Perhaps the engine room was disintegrating.

The view forward into Lyttelton revealed it for what it was. Church steeples and building facades collapsed, and dust rose throughout the township. I also observed that the No.

A LIFE LESS ORDINARY

7 Wharf, to which we were secured, had de-coupled from the shoreline and was swaying (a self-protection design feature as it turned out).

How fortuitous that we were there and more so that we were full of Army personnel and vehicles. The shocked people of Lyttelton must have been amazed at the sight of four LAVs in their streets providing assistance, not five minutes from the first shake.

I was immensely proud of my team who, over the following two weeks provided essential support to the Lyttelton community with meals, security, clean up and a shoulder to lean on.

One week exactly after that quake struck, at 12.51 pm, I gathered with members of my ship’s company and that of PUkAkI and OTAGO as we joined the Lyttelton community for the national remembrance service and silence.

CANTERBURY’s ship’s bell was erected outside the Fire Station in Lyttelton and was rung out over the crowd in lieu of the town’s church bells – none of which survived the earthquake. This was a special time as CANTERBURY emulated the remarkable efforts of VERONICA in Napier 80 years earlier.

My last job with CANTERBURY was Exercise Pacific Partnership 2011 which was a humanitarian and engineering mission to Tonga and Vanuatu. This six-week trip to the tropics was a satisfying and appropriate way for my period of command to come to an end.

Inevitably, I had to hand CANTERBURY over to the next guy, but since that time I have been away in the Gulf of Aden tackling pirates as the Commander of Combined Task Force 151, looking after safety and standards for our Fleet, studying for and achieving a Masters Degree in Strategic Studies and most recently, taking on command of our fleet. In 2016 I was fortunate to command the Amphibious Task Force for Exercise RIMPAC, comprising 13 ships, over 10,000 personnel and 42 aircraft, all as a result of weaselling out of a maths period.

Now I am fortunate to be charged with formulating, implementing and monitoring Defence’s strategic journey, a challenging and rewarding role in support of our Chief of Defence.

A life less ordinary – well so far it has been an amazing ride. I have been all over the world, never having paid to leave the country once.

Above all else it is the people that have made the journey worth it. My family and colleagues, extraordinary people who live the Navy’s core values. Courage, Commitment and Comradeship – the Navy is a place where anything is possible if you apply yourself and above all – believe in yourself.

He Heramana ahau

20

OUR PEOPLE

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0504

1. CAPT Melissa Ross, the course sponsor and champion for JOCT 18/01, poses with the intake during Exercise Storm at Tamaki Leadership Centre. 2. WOCSS John (JJ) Leybourne, with FGOFF James Stott, lead the bearer parties for the caskets of returned servicemen. 3. Deputy Chief of Navy CDRE Mat Williams presents the New Zealand Armed Forces Award to LTCDR Philip Davies, standing with his family. 4. CDR Kelvin Wishart, CDR Matthew Lee and CDR Graeme MacLean congratulate LTCDR Scott McGregor and family, recipient of the New Zealand Armed Forces Award. 5. LSCS Cory Bell (Operational Service Medal), CPOSCS Gan Elphick-Moon and CPOSCS James Leef (RNZN Long Service and Good Conduct Medals) following their medal presentations.

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6. A/LSCS Kahu Rapana puts the finishing touches on a Pink Ribbon cake aboard HMNZS TE MANA, with nearly $300 donated towards breast cancer research. 7. Participants in a Petty Officer Development Course pose for the camera. Back from left, POWT Jordan Park, POMT(L) Liam Hulse, POHST Julie Butler, POWT Ross Collett. Front from left, POWT Mark Greening, POET Byron Morrison. 8. AMED Rebekah Horgan receives a CO’s Commendation from CDR Lisa Hunn on board HMNZS TE MANA. 9. ASCS Chelsie Thomas, crewmember aboard HMNZS TAUPO, about to depart to Fiji. 10. LCSS Te Whaiora Horomia-Kaiwai greets a child during farewell celebrations on Epi Island after Exercise Tropic Major.

22

it was always the wish of Russell Moore’s family that his body be returned to New Zealand, to rest among those who loved him. Last month that wish came true, thanks

to the New Zealand Defence Force and New Zealand Government.

The body of Royal New Zealand Navy Engineering Mechanic 1st class Russell Moore arrived at Base Ohakea aboard an RNZAF C-130H(NZ) Hercules on 7 May, along with the remains of RNZAF personnel, Flight Lieutenant George Beban and Leading Aircraftman Ralph Scott. The return was the first tranche of repatriations, as part of the NZDF Te Auraki (The Return) project, under which NZDF personnel buried overseas after 1 January 1955, will be returned to New Zealand.

The three servicemen, who had a continuous vigil maintained by NZDF personnel since their disinterment from Fiji and American Samoa, were brought from the aircraft and received with a traditional Māori welcome, before being carried past a guard of honour and handed back to their families.

EM1 Moore was just 19 when he died in an accident in American Samoa in 1956, while serving on HMNZS LACHLAN. He was previously buried in Satala Cemetery in Pago Pago.

Sister Colleen Walker took him home to Timaru, where there would be a welcome home ceremony for him at the Timaru RSA.

The American Samoans had done a great good job of caring for him but she had worried, as she got older, that he would eventually be forgotten, she said.

“It should have happened and I’m glad it has. It’s the closure that none of us ever got. It’s the right thing, and it feels right.”

Mrs Walker was just nine when her tall, busy brother – who had lots of girlfriends – died.

“We’ve never, any of us, forgotten him.”

She planned to bury him next to their parents, and it would be great to be able to say to them, “he’s here”.

“I can’t believe it’s happening. I never thought it would,” she said.

The three were the first of an estimated 37 personnel expected to be repatriated from six countries this year, following a change in government policy covering those who died in service from 1955-1971.

Group Captain Carl Nixon, heading Te Auraki project, said the ceremony marked a big milestone in the mission to bring home NZDF personnel buried around the world.

“This is a significant moment in New Zealand’s military history, as we honour the lives of three NZDF personnel who died serving their country in foreign lands, and more importantly bring them home to their families, who have waited more than 60 years to be re-united,” GPCAPT Nixon said.

“This is a time when the inequalities and inconsistencies of the past are put right and everyone is treated the same, regardless of wealth, rank or cause of death.”

Planning is under way for the next tranche of repatriations, from Malaysia and Singapore, in August.

SAILOR HOME AFTER SIXTy yEARSEM1 Russell Moore.

BRINGING OUR SAILOR HOME

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“ We’ve never, any of us, forgotten him.”

The ramp ceremony at Ohakea for EM1 Russell Moore, FLTLT George Beban and LAC Ralph Scott.

Dr Hiria Hape, Hawera Hape, Kaumātua, and Chaplain Peter Olds (obscured) conduct the blessing ceremony at the grave

of EM1 Russell Moore at Satala Cemetery in Pago Pago.

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on 12 April, eight personnel from HMNZS OTAGO Ship’s Company attended a charity event “Eat My Lunch”. Eat My Lunch is a non-

profit organisation which assists in giving young kids a free lunch. Essentially they are a catering company who cater to the corporate needs. Companies place orders for catering packs put together by Chef Michael Meredith and his team, or there is a menu which you can order from and have your lunches delivered to your work. When a lunch is ordered, a lunch for a school kid is made. All cash made from sales goes towards buying more food and making the meals.

From March, it has been a heavy maintenance period for HMNZS OTAGO, which went into drydock in April for maintenance of the ship’s hull. Upgrades included a new air conditioning unit, the installation of a chilled water plant and Wideband Global Satellite system, all part of the hard work for the Ship’s Company to get OTAGO ready for sea for operations later in the year, starting in August. In the meantime, it was also a good opportunity for Ship’s Company to participate in courses. Among those was an exchange with New Zealand Customs, which involved personnel working alongside Customs Officers while searching merchant vessels in the Port of Auckland. Learning how to search rooms, and enhancing boarding skills, was invaluable experience for OTAGO’s Ship’s Company.

OTAGO’s engineers and Babcock contractors underneath the hull of OTAGO while in drydock.

EAT My LUNCH

TIGHTEN BOLTS AND TRAIN UP

by midshipman emily mulder

Eat My Lunch helps put food in kids’ lunch boxes around the Auckland region, with about 50 schools in and around Auckland receiving them.

This organisation also assists in Hamilton and Wellington. Already the organisation has given out 692,571 lunches, and they average around 2000 a day.

On the day the crew helped out by making and packaging the lunches. OTAGO hopes to attend this event again and also help in delivering the lunches in the near future.

This was a great opportunity for OTAGO’s crew to take part in a team-building event, which also assisted the community in support of a very worthy cause.

HMNZS OTAGO personnel helping out with “Eat My Lunch”, including the Ship’s Commanding Officer,

LTCDR Lorna Grey (second from left).

EAT MY LUNCH

25

on a cool autumn day in the Jervis Bay Navy training area, Royal New Zealand Navy Able Hydrographic Systems Operator (AHSO) Rose Barker is

preparing a mission that aims to use an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) to scan the ocean floor to detect mine-like objects and other threats.

Using a regular notebook computer, AHSO Barker can pre-program all of the necessary route information that is then downloaded to “the fish”, as the AUV is affectionately known, before it is sent on its way for up to six hours at a time.

AUVs are the equivalent of an aerial drone which interpret underwater information via sonar. Once the AUV is returned to the surface, AHSO Barker and fellow operators AHSO Jasmine Hope and AHSO Ann-Marie Conroy will be part of a team that analyses the data to report on any potential threats.

However, the interpretation of the data is time-consuming. For every hour the AUV is underwater, it can take another hour to painstakingly review the data it collects.

The three sailors are part of a nine-strong team that New Zealand has deployed to the Western Pacific Naval Symposium Mine Countermeasures and Diving Exercise (WPNS DIVEX 18), which is being held at HMAS Creswell between 7-18 May.

Six of the New Zealand team members are tasked with handling, operating and supervising missions for the Remus AUVs, which have quickly become an indispensable tool of navies around the world. New Zealand is also contributing two team members to the operation of the WPNS DIVEX headquarters, and another member for logistics support.

Lieutenant Commander Daniel Wierenga, the detachment OIC, said: “The opportunity to participate and integrate into a multinational exercise is invaluable to our team. The team has gained a significant amount of skill working alongside the Singaporean and Australian teams who also operate Remus 100s and they are excited about putting these skills into practice during the LIVEX portion of the exercise. The RAN have been terrific hosts and we certainly appreciate the effort put into running and organising an exercise of this magnitude.”

The RNZN operates six Remus AUVs in total and is seen as one of the most experienced operators of the devices in the world. It also operates the AUVs for missions with other New Zealand agencies including Police and Customs.

AHSO Barker said that extensive training and experience was needed before personnel could prepare and supervise missions and analyse the data efficiently. “We’re looking for areas of shadow, which could indicated something proud of the sea floor, and we’re also looking for man-made features, particularly straight edges,” she said.

While the AUV is equally adept at identifying a school of fish or even a shark, the team will identify such images in the processing state. It also relies on measurements of commonly used mines to manually compare any images that appear. A camera can be placed on the AUV to confirm any suspected target.

The Remus 100 AUVs, made by United States company Hydroid, can search to a depth of 100 metres.

NAVy PUTS SEA DRONE TO THE TESTby Lieutenant geoff Long ran

From left, AHSO Ann-Marie Conroy, AHSO Rose Barker and AHSO Jasmine Hope demonstrate the capabilities of the Remus 100 autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV).

SEA DRONE

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One step closer to completion, as the final piece of the Waterside Training Facility barge was eased into place on 11 May. The 35-metre, 15-tonne gangway had to be manoeuvred over a lamp post to make the final fit. When the training barge officially opens next month, it will offer on-the-water training, with sailors being able to recover sea boats, learn about embarking and disembarking using ladders, launch life rafts and provide swimmer of the watch training. It means sailors are posted to ships with these tasks cleared, rather than taking up ship time in training.

GANGWAy TOUCHES DOWN

warrant Officer Diver Brendon Johnson has been playing top-level sport for the New Zealand Defence Force for 30 years and is showing no

sign of slowing up.

WODR Johnson’s sporting talents cover rugby, rugby league, touch rugby and tag – a rugby league-touch hybrid – and he was last month awarded an NZDF Colour for Services to Touch Rugby.

“It’s an honour to be amongst the other recipients [over the years],” the Head of the Diving School at Devonport Naval Base said.

Sport gave a sense of pride and camaraderie and created an opportunity for personnel to meet and socialise with those in the other services, WODR Johnson said.

It had also given him opportunities outside the NZDF, with his next challenge being representing New Zealand in the Tag World Cup in 2018.

WODR Johnson’s colour honour was presented at the New Zealand Defence Force Sports Awards, where

SEEING THE WORLD THROUGH SPORTby sharon Lundy

New Zealand Warriors contracted rugby league player Leading Aircraftman Cole Waaka took out the Individual Sports Person of the Year. Major Brett Grieve, NZ Army, won the Outstanding Sports Achievement of the Year award for cycling, Robert “Tiny” Graham was named Sports Official of the Year for his contribution to rugby and the NZDF rugby team, the Defence Blacks, took out the Sports Team of the Year award.

The awards are the pinnacle of sporting achievement in the NZDF for the 2017 year. Chief of Defence Force Lieutenant General (LTGEN) Tim keating said physical fitness and teamwork were vital components of a successful military force and were part of the military lifestyle which attracted new recruits.

“Sport is an extension of maintaining our basic physical fitness; sport showcases both individual and team excellence and contributes to building teamwork and camaraderie,” LTGEN keating said.

“Through sport we build bridges between Defence and the local community.”

WODR Brendon Johnson has been awarded a NZDF Colour for services to touch rugby.

27

eight sailors from HMNZS TE KAHA had a rare opportunity to complete the Royal Canadian Navy’s Naval Boarding Party Course last month.

In April, TE kAHA had arrived in beautiful Victoria, Canada and was in the process of de-storing in preparation for the Frigate Systems Upgrade when an opportunity, rarely

offered, arose to send a mixture of Officers, Senior Ratings and Junior Seaman Combat Specialist ratings to attend the course alongside other RCN sailors.

From day one the tone was set. Specialist PT sessions were run every morning to build functional strength and endurance aimed to enhance every movement which one would experience during a boarding. This included climbing swinging ladders, agility training and weighted-vest sessions.

Week one focused on hand-to-hand combat and intermediate weapons. Being faced with someone twice your size can be a daunting affair, however for the safety of yourself and your team there may be a requirement to “drop them”. The instructors not only provided the course with techniques to do just that, but also to gain complete compliance. From wrist locks to a range of pressure points, even the smallest person was able to gain complete compliance from the biggest and then handcuff them.

On a brisk Friday morning all of us were left crying and helpless after briefly being contaminated by the Oleoresin Capsicum (OC) spray. Training on the ASP Baton was gruelling; throwing constant strikes against body dummies until one was gasping for air was merely the tip of the iceberg. It is not until someone is charging towards you, that you find out how you respond in a high threat environment. Each student had to stand up and fight for a set period of time against a superior trained instructor, proving that everyone can overcome their limits when pushed hard enough.

Range weeks 2 and 3, though not as confrontational as the previous, took those who were not particularly experienced with firearms to a level of mastery. Using the Sig Sauer P225 and the RCN C8 Carbine, more than 10,000 rounds were fired each day. Barricade roll-out firing, non-dominant one-handed pistol firing and many more styles are some of

ELITE BOARDING SKILLSby sLt dillon Hyland

the techniques taught on the course so that one is able to protect themselves and their team.

It’s all well and good shooting in an open range against stationary targets but what if they were firing back? We donned our weight vests (simulating bullet-proof vests) and tactical gear and changed out our live rounds for simulated ones. To ensure realism the RCN have built an incredible facility from eleven 22-foot containers, side by side/stacked and cut into a mock three deck-high merchant ship’s superstructure, complete with passageways, a bridge and an engine room.

Every entry into a compartment was treated as the real thing. Close Quarters Battle (CQB) is the essence of a boarding. There was no room for complacency as the instructors had equipped role players with the same weaponry, who could be behind any door.

Another dimension was added once we learned Combat First Aid. Anyone can apply a bandage or provide CPR in a classroom, but in the boarding world that is not where these skills will be required. After learning the basics we applied our training in a high stress environment. If we were ever shot on the extremities (outside of our bullet-proof vests) we had to apply a tourniquet and bandage to stop the ‘bleeding’. But what if someone was still firing or the area wasn’t clear yet? This is where the term ‘Win the Fire Fight First’ comes in. Instinct would have it that if you see your fellow teammate bleeding out you would jump in to stem the bleeding, but if so you’re most likely adding another casualty to the mix.

The worst case scenario could develop at any time, from violent role-players with a hidden firearm, or someone falling down stairs requiring evacuation, so the approach to a boarding had to be flexible.. From day one onwards, “expect the worst” was the mind-set the NBP course instilled in its students. Thanks to this mentality and the style of training the RCN employ, all 18 students became proficient in boarding skills but also adaptable to deal with any likely contingency, no matter the complexity. This course not only has increased TE kAHA’s operational output through upskilling its boarding team but increased the maritime combat capability of the NZDF as a whole.

Scaling the “hull” to effect a boarding of a vessel.

ELITE BOARDING SkILLS

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a shy approach from Epi Island village children, their eyes on a rugby ball, reminds Sub Lieutenant Erica Williams how lucky she is to work for the

Royal New Zealand Navy.

HMNZS CANTERBURY’s Commanding Officer’s secretary is taking a rare moment away from the ship with other members of the Ship’s Company during Exercise Tropic Major. The farewell for Joint Task Force 651 is about to take place at Lamen Bay village, and SLT Williams is making the most of the warm breeze, the coconut palms and the curious gazes of the village children. There’s a language barrier, but it doesn’t take long for the rugby ball to start getting passed around.

SLT Williams, Papakura, finished officer training at the end of 2016, but was a sailor before that, joining in 2013 after obtaining a degree and post graduate diploma in Performing Arts from the University of Auckland. “When I first joined, I didn’t really know the difference between a rating and an officer. I really enjoyed my trade, as a steward, but I was looking for a different kind of challenge.”

She had a lot of self-doubts about becoming an officer. “I wasn’t sure whether I would be what they were looking for, whether I had the leadership qualities. My Commanding Officer asked to see me, and I still remember his words: I’m exactly what they are looking for. And for the first time, I thought I would have a shot.”

She had been looking for a military career that would keep her Auckland-based, to stay close to family. “It was the base being in Auckland, but it was also the travel, the opportunities to see the world. I was 21 when I joined, and this was very much a match for me, straight off. And ever since then, it’s been magic.” She calls herself the “ambassador” for the Navy for her family and friends, being the first to join, although she has a grandfather who was in the Royal Navy. “He’s incredibly proud. When I got promoted to Able Rate, he came to PHILOMEL and put the rank slides on.”

MAKING yOUR OWN LUCKby andrew bonallack

SLT Williams is an assistant supply officer, with her primary role as the CO’s secretary. “This is the first captain I have been secretary for, and it’s based around how they run their day-to-day schedule. My CO is very relaxed. For me, it’s like being an executive assistant, and getting to know someone of a senior rank and what they like. It’s taught me how to coordinate and manage correspondence, and facilitating the reports and logs that come in from each department on the ship.” She has learned that regardless of the tempo of the ship, a lot of things still need to happen.

It’s a busy role, but standing in the coral grit in Lamen Bay village, she says she has realised how important it is to get time outside the ship. “You are inside the ship, your job needs to be completed. But it is important to acknowledge where you are. You have to strike that balance. Do the work, but you are in the Pacific Islands, and you are very lucky to be here.”

She has given talks at her old school, Papakura High, and has told people that if they are not sure what to do in life, have a look at the services. “Spend a few years. The lessons you get, the qualifications you get, the discipline you get. You make awesome friends, and see different parts of the world.”

This is her second time in Vanuatu. She was at Epi Island in 2015, also on CANTERBURY for Cyclone Pam disaster relief. “It’s nice to be back here, this time demonstrating positive capability.”

“ I was 21 when I joined, and this was very much a match for me, straight off.”

MAkING YOUR OWN LUCk

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the Red Sea, Gulf of Aden and the Yemen Coast is one of the busiest sea lanes in the world. 23,000 ships pass each year, some with the most sinister

of intentions. In 2012 Operation Scimitar Anzac was in full swing, supporting the Australian Combined Task Force in patrolling and boarding ships in the fight against weapons and drug trafficking.

Aboard Britain’s most advanced warship of the day, HMS DARING, was Captain Lance Cook RNZN, Deputy Commander of CTF150 and Chief of Staff of the Royal Australian Navy Command Staff, a 21-person contingent.

The “warlike” operation in the Gulf has this month seen CAPT Cook personally presented with the Australian Active Service Medal (with International Coalition Against Terrorism clasp) from Australia’s Chief of Navy, Vice Admiral Tim Barrett, in a ceremony in Wellington. The Vice Admiral’s presence was kept as a surprise for CAPT Cook.

He joins eighteen New Zealand personnel who have been given approval by the Prime Minister to accept the medal, including Commander John McQueen, who as a Lieutenant Commander served with CAPT Cook on CTF150.

CTF150’s purpose is to disrupt terrorist organisations by restricting their freedom of manoeuvre at sea to transport personnel, weapons and narcotics.

VADM Barrett says it gave him great pleasure to award the medal to CAPT Cook, with the opportunity reminding him how closely aligned the two navies were. “We should not underestimate the importance of what the CTF150 do. This is a medal for showing extraordinary perseverance over a long period of time.”

That perseverance is needed when boarding teams are searching ship after ship, which made the “win” of a drugs bust that much sweeter. In February 2012 HMAS PARRAMATTA struck gold with a dhow containing 240kg of narcotics, worth over US$5 million. CAPT Cook remembers that moment.

DRUG BUSTING WORK RECOGNISEDby andrew bonallack

“240kg of narcotics

worth over US$5 million.”

“PARRAMATTA was the first actual achievement of the mission. We had done number on number of boardings, and after many with no result, we finally had one. We were elated. It was a significant part of what we wanted to do, which was countering the drug flow.”

He says the mission was “truly an adventure” and the reason he joined the service. “Our command team was truly representative of that Anzac spirit between our two countries. I hope it becomes a more common occurrence.”

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on Saturday 19 May the Junior Officer Common Training (JOCT) 18/01 intake ventured out into the big blue, as for many it would be their first

experience on the water in uniform. Eighteen midshipmen, along with Petty Officer Seaman Combat Specialist Marty Plant left in the morning heading for Bayswater Marina where they would meet with historic naval vessel HDML kUPARU for a day trip.

The trip came about after several Midshipmen had read in Navy Today about the ongoing restoration of HDML kUPARU by Scott Perry of Helensville. Later, during a RHIB exercise for Basic Mariner Training in Westhaven Marina, Mr Perry came alongside in the historic vessel. Contacts were exchanged and after a brief tour of the vessel, JOCT 18/01 said they wanted to invest time into this vessel, in their downtime, to do a small part to help in its restoration.

Throughout the morning, the team conducted ship’s husbandry work for Mr Perry to help him restore the beautiful vessel in the small ways they could, including polishing, scrubbing, brass work and general maintenance around the vessel.

Alongside this, JOCT 18/01 was very excited to get fully involved with taskings and operations in kUPARU, where Mr Perry was able to show future Engineering Officers the workings of engines and systems down below. Aspiring General List Executive (GLX) officers also got to experience steering and navigation behind the wheel of an operating vessel. For the Midshipman this will be one morning to remember for a long time into their future RNZN career.

In paying homage to RNZN history on board HDML kUPARU, it only seemed right that they travelled to the historic home of naval training at Motuihe Island, where they anchored up for a barbeque lunch. With knowledgeable and experienced sailors on board, a few salty dits were spun around the history of the RNZN.

JUNIOR OFFICERS GIVE BACKby midshipman charles ward

The day was a success with Junior Officers getting some long-wanted experience out on the water and team building outside the training environment, combined with exposure to the rich history and practical processes used by the Navy.

A huge thank you goes out to Mr Perry for giving up his Saturday to take JOCT 18/01 on board HDML kUPARU. JOCT 18/01 is highly supportive of Mr Perry’s work in restoring HDML kUPARU and hopes the RNZN will work to regain and maintain connection with this historic vessel, as a living reminder of our history.

This experience was truly humbling for all of JOCT 18/01 and they look forward to seeing other groups experience the same pleasure that they did on board HDML kUPARU.

Those wanting to assist in Scott Perry’s restoration of kUPARU can go to his Givealittle page at

https://givealittle.co.nz/cause/exnavy

MID Peter Hong, Marine Engineering Officer, stands at attention with his classmates on HDML KUPARU.

HDML kUPARU

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a Tauranga Naval reservist’s childhood dream of exploring Antarctica has led to the winner’s podium in a national technology competition.

Lieutenant John Ahearn, a GPS technology expert and founder of GPS Control Systems Ltd, was the grand final winner in the NZ Space Challenge last month, receiving $40,000, six months of desk space at a local business incubator, and mentoring access.

LT Ahearn and his team tackled the problem of transporting large-scale science projects across the Antarctic ice shelf. They designed a satellite navigation and self-steering system to help heavy tracked vehicles detect and avoid perilous ice shelf crevasses.

LT Ahearn had a particular route in mind – the hot water drilling site 350km out from Scott Base, on the Ross Ice shelf. Hot water is used to create bore holes to collect water samples deep in the ice and sediment. However, the journey to the site could be fraught.

“The constraint is ice shelf crevasses. The ice shelf is moving constantly, up to three metres a day. You get shear zones, and that’s where the danger is. Crevasses open up randomly and are often covered by snow, you can’t see them.

He said other benefits were minimising crew stress and fatigue and getting equipment where it needs to be, safely and on time.

“A convoy travelling on the ice is more desirable than travelling by air because heavy tracked vehicles can drag many more tonnes of equipment than a plane can carry, and can travel in almost any weather. Fuel usage is significantly reduced and there is less environmental impact.”

GPS Control Systems beat other applicants from Northland, Auckland and the Bay of Plenty to emerge as one of the five NZ Space Challenge regional finalists.

SCIENCE WINNER GUIDES THE WAy

LT Ahearn says he may have had a competitive advantage over other teams as he recently visited the Antarctic on a field trip as part of a Post Graduate Certificate in Antarctic studies at Canterbury University. It helped ground him in the requirements of the Antarctic Treaty – what you could do, and what you couldn’t.

He had also seen that equipment and vehicles needed to be very simple in Antarctica, and easy to repair. “Whatever you propose, it has to be easily implemented. You had to approach it from a very simplistic basis. You need something that works now, not what might work in the future.”

He hopes his win will result in the opportunity to return to Antarctica with his workmates to install the technology.

“Having been down there. I like to think it was my creative and innovative mind at work but maybe it was just very good luck,” he says.

LT Ahearn joined the Naval Reserves and HMNZS NGAPONA (Tauranga branch) as a specialist officer six years ago, after meeting a recruiter on a plane. The recruiter thought the Navy could gain value from a person with his skills. LT Ahearn has since trained in the Maritime Trade Operations branch, a requirement of Naval Reserves. “I’ve had a great time,” he says. “I’ve done a lot of hard work, a lot of courses. It’s been a wonderful experience. We’re a small unit and we get out, we do a lot.” His father was a Naval Reservist in the Fleet Air Arm during World War II.

As well as real-life experience in the Antarctic, Ahearn says he’s been a fan of the icy continent for a very long time. “My interest in the Antarctic comes from reading the stories of the heroic age of Antarctic exploration when I was about 8 years old.

“The journeys of Scott, Amundsen, Shackleton and others were absolutely amazing. Not only did they explore but they did science on the way.”

LT John Ahearn in front of Mt Erebus, Antarctica.

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things are changing in career management. For the first time in NZDF career management history, all Single Service Career Managers and

Career Administrators will be meeting in Ohakea for a three-day conference in June. Building the foundation for an NZDF career management culture and working towards developing consistent career management practice will be the focus of this inaugural event.

Forming part of a significant career operating model change, the conference aligns with the People25 Strategy and the long-term goal of meaningful career, talent and performance management.

The Directorate of Career and Talent Management and Heads of Service career management have been charged with bringing this transformation to life; leading the development of processes, programmes and resources in career management, a new Intranet site and changes to policy.

In the long-term, system transformation will mean comprehensive professional support is available to all NZDF Career Managers – Single Services, Tri-Service and Civilian, in the following areas: Training; Practice Development; Professional Standards; and Policy and Technical Processes.

Professional support is founded on the premise that the Career Manager role is at the centre of every NZDF capability decision. Career Managers are the drivers and developers of the Force for NZ, and create the opportunity for meaningful career and talent management over and above the posting cycle.

With a greater focus on career management practice, keep an eye out for the changes that will benefit your career, including long-term career development and reinforcement of skills and potential.

Are you a serving Reservist about to complete your university studies? Want to learn more about what the NZDF does in your area of study?

The HQNZDF Reserve Force Internship Scheme (RIS) will provide selected NZDF Reservists with an internship at an NZDF base across New Zealand. Interns will be placed where their individual skills can best be used while the intern will be exposed to opportunities to further a military or civilian career with the NZDF.

At the end of the 14-week placement, applicants will receive a final report/reference from their sponsor branch.

Ten internships are available to current tertiary students who are junior rank or junior officer Reservists from either the Navy, Army or Air Force; have completed more than two year’s undergraduate graduate studies or undertaking post graduate studies; are available for 14 weeks from 19 November 2018 to 22 February 2019 (individual start and finish dates are able to be negotiated to suit academic commitments); not in paid civilian employment and agree to wear civilian clothes for the duration of the internship.

Remuneration and travel expenses included.

The Reserve Force Internship Scheme is managed by the Directorate of Reserves, Youth and Sport (DRYS), Freyberg Building, HQNZDF, Wellington. For any queries and more information please email reserves@nzdf.mil.nz.

Final day for applications: Friday, 03 august

SPOT THE SADDLEBACK! Commander Emma Grant and Chloe Oliver (daughter of Commander Tim Oliver) release one of the first 40 saddlebacks into NZDF bush land at the back of the Tamaki Leadership Centre on Whangaparaoa Peninsula. The land, part of a training base for the Navy, backs onto Shakespear Regional Park and is protected with a predator-proof fence across the eastern tip of the Peninsula. The release was led by the Auckland Council as part of their work to reintroduce rare bird species into the park.

CONFERENCE ALIGNMENT

HQ NZDF INTERNSHIPS 2018

INTERNSHIPS

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Hawke’s Bay and Royal New Zealand Navy generosity have combined to provide water tanks for three Tongan schools still in disrepair from Cyclone Gita.

In February, HMNZS OTAGO, which was due to take part in the Napier Art Deco Festival, had to cancel its traditional 1930’s-styled Charity Cocktail event on its flight deck after the ship was placed on standby for Cyclone Gita and diverted to Devonport.

Various Napier businesses who bought tickets for the evening declined a refund, saying they wanted the money to benefit Tonga. They appreciated that this was the Navy’s role – to assist and aid others just as they did during the 1931 Napier earthquake.

Approximately $7,000 was donated. In consulation with the Navy and Tonga’s National Emergency Office (NEMO), four 10,000 litre water tanks were purchased. Two were placed at Government Primary School (GPS) Fasi, one at Ha’asini School and one at Hoi School.

New Zealand High Commissioner to Tonga, Tiffany Babington, officially handed over two of the water tanks on behalf of the donors to the Principal of GPS Fasi, Mrs Pomana Hui.

Mrs Hui says she was very grateful for the donation. Her school was still in disrepair following the cyclone. The 500 students previously only had access to a 5,000 litre tank, and now they have 20,000 litres.

Fasi student Mele Mahe wrote to the High Commissioner to thank her. “We thank you for giving us our much needed tanks,” he wrote.

Hoi School’s 67 students have been unable to return to their classroom because of damage.

Schools in Tonga provide assistance to surrounding villages in times of water shortages, so these tanks will also support the wider community in the future.

Students at GPS Fasi pose with one of their new water tanks.

“ The 500 students previously only had access to a 5,000 litre tank, and now they have 20,000 litres.”

NAPIER AND NAVy COMBINE IN SCHOOL TANK DONATION

DONATION TO TONGA

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on 20 April, we sent an RNZN team to take part in the annual “Tower De Force” challenge, a military-styled relay event like no other in New Zealand. This

event is an opportunity to recognise those who have served and are currently serving in our New Zealand Defence Force, and those serving in other New Zealand emergency response organisations.

There were six other teams taking part in this epic event: Royal New Zealand Air Force, New Zealand Army, New Zealand Police, St Johns, NZDF Veterans and the SkyCity team. Each team consisted of six members, each with their own specific role to play. These personnel were put to the test in a battle of skill, agility, teamwork, stamina and brute strength.

The event had teams facing a series of challenges to retrieve their flag from the top of the Sky Tower (328m above the pavement) and return it to ground level to be hoisted up each team’s respective flag pole. The challenges included a military skills course at the bottom of the tower (which included flipping a whopping 225kg tyre 10 times), a climb up 1229 stairs, an emergency first aid scenario (simulated), a climb up the mast of the Sky Tower (91m vertical ladder climb) to grab the flag, followed by a 180-metre abseil down the Sky Tower lift shaft to finish with the raising of their flag at the base of the tower.

Last year the Navy won the title so they were first to step off in the event, and they were followed by an eager Army team, who just missed out on the win last year. This year, the Navy, Army and Air Force teams had the three fastest times and these were all extremely close, with penalties also added to the total time for safety breaches and incorrect procedures. After all penalties were deducted and with a total time just shy of 36 minutes, it was Army who came away with the victory, pipping Navy by a narrow 24 seconds.

Acting Petty Officer Chef Mitchell Falconer took the elevator to the 60th floor with his teammate and waited there for the tag from another teammate who did the medical exercise. He then did the first 60 metres of the ladder climb to the top of the Sky Tower.

“It was hard going up, not the height as I do rock climbing for a sport, but the physical nature of climbing a ladder for 60 metres – it’s a long way up,” he said. “I got about three quarters of the way up, and then the last part was gruelling.

“Another team member went up before me and he was quicker – he was waiting at the Crow’s Nest, and from there he climbed another 30 metres or so up the ladder to the top to retrieve the flag canister. He did really well,” he said. “I waited at the Crow’s Nest and took the flag canister from

A TOWER DE FORCEby Ltpi Lauren meyer and Lpti Hamish pyne

Mark and descended to where Lauren was waiting to take the flag down to the two abseilers.

“Coming down is also hard, technically, because if your foot slips on a rung it can put you out of sync and the flag canister was banging on my harness,” says POCH Falconer. “We then shot down the stairs to meet up with the team at the flagpole at the bottom to raise our flag.

“It would be nice if we had won again, but at the end of the day it’s a fun event to raise funds for the RSA veterans,” he said.

An immense amount of organisation and planning was required from the SkyCity team to pull the event off, which was ably supported by CPOPTI Marc Thomas and the Physical Performance Squadron (PPS) PTI’s. NZDF PTI’s also officiated the challenge, with clip boards, stopwatches and whistles at the ready, ensuring rules, safety and procedures were adhered to throughout. The Defence Health Organisation (DHO) Medics from Devonport also played a vital role. They developed a challenging scenario in conjunction with their Team Health PTI’s, and provided assessors and an actor to run a realistic medical incident in level 44 of the Sky Tower.

“Tower De Force” supports New Zealand’s National Poppy Appeal, by raising funds and awareness for our New Zealand Veterans (past and present), their families and dependants. It was safe to say that all the teams that participated did so with a sense of honour and passion that makes us proud to be a kiwi.

Team Navy with support crew at the Sky Tower.

POPTI Rae Olsen carries LTCDR Scott McGregor during a Tower de Force challenge.

TOWER DE FORCE

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by jack donnelly and graeme pearce

The Biannual Lunch is being held at the RNZN Ngataringa Bay Sports Complex in Devonport, Auckland on Saturday 25 May 2019 from 1100 to 1430.

All those who joined the RNZN as an Artificer Apprentice are cordially invited to the Luncheon. Wives, Partners and Widows are also most welcome to attend.

For registration forms please contact either:

andy Francis email: andy.francis@xtra.co.nz mobile: 0274 740 050

or chris cooper email: cmcooper@xtra.co.nz mobile: 021 078 5769

The authors of a book of the early history of sport in the Royal New Zealand Navy say this definitive book ensures the Navy’s sporting memoirs are preserved for history.

“Our title, Sailors Against The Odds, was an obvious choice when you consider that throughout this era, the matelot played sport all around the world, against highly rated state, regional, city and club teams,” says Jack Donnelly, a retired Warrant Officer Gunnery Instructor. “In Auckland they were up against some of the best teams in New Zealand. The fact that our teams suffered in consistency due to having to keep the ‘sea lanes’ open and many of our more skilful and top players were not always available made their task so much harder.

“The sporting matelot was a very unique human being in that he travelled the world in ships which were his home away from home, and his ship-mates, his family away from family. He pioneered sport in certain countries, was an ambassador for New Zealand, met and mixed with many cultures and was always prepared to play any sport asked of him, such was his loyalty and commitment to his ship or establishment.”

The book was launched on 14 April at the Ngataringa Sports Club. It can be purchased from the Naval Museum in Auckland, or by contacting Graeme Pearce at pearcegc@xtra.co.nz for $49.95.

captain rankIn Navy Today February we were incorrect in the name of the last “Captain” rank to command at sea. That distinction belongs to Captain J G Leonard in HMNZS SOUTHLAND, to 1987.

port chalmers manIn our Navy Today April article on HMNZS MOA’s engagement with Japanese submarine I-1, we referenced Leading Signalman Campbell Buchanan, mentioned in dispatches for gallantry. LS Buchanan is from Port Chalmers, Dunedin, not Christchurch.

RNZN ARTIFICER APPRENTICES ASSOCIATION REUNION LUNCH 2019

SAILORS AGAINST THE ODDS

CORRECTIONS

SAILORS AGAINST THE ODDS

MEMOIRS OF NEW ZEALAND NAVY SPORT

1941-1980

MENS SANA IN CORPORE SANOA healthy mind in a health body

Team Navy with support crew at the Sky Tower.

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SEE ROLES NOW AT

MYPURPOSE.MIL.NZ

WEWANT YOURCOMRADESHIP

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