Final Harbour entry for two Navy ships

Two of the remaining three Navy In Shore Patrol Craft, HMNZS WAKAKURA and HMNZS KIWI will enter Auckland Harbour for the final time at 7:30 am Thursday 29 November 2007 proudly flying their Decommissioning Pennants.

Both ships will conduct ceremonial manoeuvres within the Stanley Bay Basin area prior to berthing alongside the Devonport Naval Base at 08:05 am.

This will be the final task for the Commanding Officer of HMNZS KIWI, Lieutenant John McQueen, the Commanding Officer of HMNZS WAKAKURA, Lieutenant Grant Judson and their respective crews of 17 men and women, onboard the two ships. Both ships will formally decommission from operational service on Tuesday 11 December 2007.

Sister ships, HINAU and MOA were decommissioned on 23 January 2007, with the fifth In Shore Patrol Craft, HMNZS KAHU, to remain in operational service as the Navigational and Seamanship Training Ship.

Named after World War II minesweepers of the Royal New Zealand Navy, Inshore Patrol Craft KIWI and WAKAKURA were attached to the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve Divisions (RNZNVR) in Christchurch and Wellington respectively until April 2005.

Built in Whangarei, New Zealand in the 1970s, the ships were used for conducting basic seamanship and navigation training.

The Inshore Patrol Craft crewed by the Volunteer Reserve supported many Naval and Defence Force exercises, as well as multi agency government work during their service. They conducted fishery patrols, search and rescue operations, mine counter-measure activities, started yacht races, and carried out seamanship training, contributing to the functions of the Defence Force as a whole.

They were relocated to Devonport Naval Base for use as training ships whilst the new ships of Project Protector are being built and will decommission over staged intervals.

The new In Shore Patrol Vessels being built under Project Protector, ROTOITI, HAWEA, PUKAKI and TAUPO, will commission into operational service in 2008 to replace the four In Shore Patrol Craft.

Ends