New Zealand Defence Force personnel and assets have begun to deploy to one of the world’s largest multi-national military exercises being held in Australia next week.
Exercise Talisman Sabre features more than 30,000 military personnel and platforms from 19 nations and is being held from July 13 to August 4.
The biannual exercise was designed to improve and strengthen interoperability and combat readiness.
Close to 35 New Zealand Army vehicles, including light armoured vehicles and the new Bushmaster protected mobility vehicles, along with 150 personnel, boarded HMNZS Canterbury today bound for Queensland.
Upon arrival, the NZ Army combat team would link up with the Australian Army’s 7th brigade for a preparatory exercise in the build up to Talisman Sabre.
They would be joined by HMNZS Te Kaha, three NH90 helicopters, P-8A Poseidon aircraft, mine warfare divers, military police, medics, logistics and others as part of the exercises across land, air, and sea.
More than 680 NZDF personnel would deploy on the exercise.
‘Invaluable opportunity’ — NZDF
Commander Joint Force Major General Rob Krushka said Talisman Sabre provided an “invaluable opportunity” to train with some of our closest defence partners, including Australia, the United States, Japan and the United Kingdom among others.
“Exercises like this ensure we remain a credible, capable and combat-ready force, ready to respond to regional and global challenges.”
Krushka said one of the NZDF’s capabilities was “force integration”.
“We have a well-proven ability to seamlessly embed our personnel and platforms into multi-national, multi-domain tactical forces and this exercise gives us another opportunity to demonstrate this.”