The Royal New Zealand Navy is the maritime arm of the New Zealand Defence Force. The fleet currently consists of nine ships. The Navy had its origins in the Naval Defence Act 1913, and the subsequent purchase of the cruiser HMS Philomel, which by 1921 had been moored in Auckland as a training ship. A slow buildup occurred during the interwar period, and then perhaps the infant Navy's most notable event occurred when HMS Achilles fought alongside two other Royal Navy cruisers at the Battle of the River Plate against the German ship, Graf Spee, in December 1939.
The Naval Service is the maritime component of the Defence Forces of Ireland and is one of the three branches of the Irish Defence Forces. Its base is in Haulbowline, County Cork.
The Moa-class patrol boat was a class of patrol boats built between 1978 and 1985 for the Royal New Zealand Navy by the Whangarei Engineering and Construction Company. They were based on an Australian boat design.
The Protector-class offshore patrol vessel is a ship class of two offshore patrol vessel (OPVs) operated by the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) since 2010. The ships are named HMNZS Otago and HMNZS Wellington.
The Royal New Zealand Navy has several long-term projects to retain and update its capabilities for the future.
The Lake-class inshore patrol vessel is a ship class of inshore patrol vessels (IPVs) of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) and planned for the Irish Naval Service which replaced the RNZN's Moa-class patrol boats in 2007–2008. All four vessels are named after New Zealand lakes.
Project Protector was a Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) procurement project that was undertaken during the 2000s. At the start of the decade, the New Zealand government tasked the New Zealand Defence Force to develop an equal combat, peacekeeping, and disaster relief capability, in which the RNZN was to focus on conducting sealift operations and patrols of the Economic Exclusion Zone. A series of reviews found that the RNZN was lacking in these capabilities, and Project Protector was established to acquire three new ship types: a single multi-role sealift ship, two offshore patrol vessels, and four inshore patrol vessels. After a two-year information-gathering and tender process, an Australian company, Tenix Defence, was selected as the primary contractor.
HMNZS Otago (P148) is a Protector-class offshore patrol vessel in service with the Royal New Zealand Navy. The development of the OPV design based on an Irish Naval Service OPV class was very contentious, with the RNZN arguing for the need for a limited combat suite for effective training and patrol work with a 57 mm–76 mm light frigate gun and associated fire control, radar and electronic warfare systems at least compatible with current 2nd light RN OPVs. The government and Cabinet preference was to use the space and extra finance available to incorporate ice strengthening and provision of extra coastal patrol vessels. The RNZN view was that adding ice strengthening was unnecessary for Southern Ocean patrols, distinct from operations in the Ross Sea, and the extra weight and complexity would stress and shorten the life of the hulls from 25 to 15 years. She was launched in 2006 but suffered from problems during construction and was not commissioned until 2010, two years later than planned. Soon after commissioning Otago encountered problems with both her engines which delayed her arrival at her home port of Port Chalmers. She has served on several lengthy patrols of the Antarctic, though she lacks the capability to operate in heavier levels of ice-coverage which has led to the cancellation of at least one planned operation.
The Peacock class is a class of patrol corvette built for the Royal Navy. Five were constructed, and by 1997 all had been sold to the Irish Naval Service or the Philippine Navy.
HMNZS Rotoiti (F625) was a Loch-class frigate of the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN), which had formerly served in the British Royal Navy as HMS Loch Katrine at the end of World War II.
HMNZS Hawea (F422), formerly HMS Loch Eck (K422), was one of six Loch-class frigates that served in both the Royal Navy (RN) and the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN). The ship was laid down by Smiths Dock on 25 October 1943, launched on 25 April 1944 and commissioned into the Royal Navy as HMS Loch Eck on 7 November 1944.
HMNZS Hawea is a Lake-class inshore patrol vessel of the Royal New Zealand Navy. Hawea was constructed between 2004 and 2007, and commissioned on 1 May 2009. She performs border and fisheries protection patrols.
HMNZS Pukaki is a Lake-class inshore patrol vessel inshore patrol boat of the Royal New Zealand Navy. Pukaki was launched in Whangarei Harbour on 6 May 2008. Its primary duties included border and fisheries protection patrols, surveillance, boarding operations and search and rescue response.
HMNZS Taupo is a Lake-class inshore patrol vessel of the Royal New Zealand Navy. Taupo was delivered to the Ministry of Defence on 28 May 2009 and commissioned into the Royal New Zealand Navy on 29 May 2009. Taupo is the third ship of this name to serve in the Royal New Zealand Navy and is named after Lake Taupo. Both Lake-class were sold to the Irish Naval Service in 2023 and delivered in May 2023. They are due in service sometime in 2024 after commission works are completed. Both are planned to be based on the east coast of Ireland, where sea conditions suit their capabilities.
The Lake-class patrol vessel was a class of patrol vessels built in 1974 for the Royal New Zealand Navy by the British boat builders Brooke Marine.
HMNZS Pukaki was a Lake-class inshore patrol vessel of the Royal New Zealand Navy. Pukaki commissioned in 1975, deleted in 1991 and sold as a private launch.
HMNZS Rotoiti was a Lake-class patrol vessel of the Royal New Zealand Navy. It was commissioned in 1975 and deleted in 1991.
HMNZS Taupo was a Lake-class patrol vessel of the Royal New Zealand Navy. Taupo was commissioned in 1975 and decommissioned in 1991, serving for 16 years.
HMS Loch Achray was a Loch-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was built by Smith's Dock Co. Ltd. in South Bank-on-Tees and launched on 7 July 1944. After service in World War II, she was sold to the Royal New Zealand Navy and renamed HMNZS Kaniere (F426) in September 1948. After service in the Korean War, she was used as a training ship from 1957. She was sold in 1966 for breaking up in Hong Kong.
HMNZS Rotoiti has been the name of three ships of the Royal New Zealand Navy:
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