They certainly flew a long way - 24 hours - to get to FOB Albertshof, part of the JMRC at Hohenfels, Germany, and the location for the lead-up to Exercise Co-Operative Spirit 2008.
It’s a fast-paced existence for the men and women of Bravo Coy, 2/1 RNZIR, who deployed to Germany just three weeks after returning to New Zealand from EX TAIAHA TOMBUK, a Five Power Defence Arrangement exercise that saw them training in the heat of the Malaysian jungle.
But despite that frantic pace, there’s no rest for this team – they’ve come all this way for the opportunity to participate in the first ‘boots on the ground’ ABCA exercise in 20 odd years.
The ability to train in the sophisticated facility available at the JMRC has seen the Kiwis out in ‘the Box’ on a daily basis over the past nine days, pausing only to take in the Bledisloe Cup rugby match at the Community Activity Centre on Saturday 13 September. One British LTCOL was quoted as saying that there is life and death – but for the Kiwis and Aussies, rugby is more important.
The weather has taken a turn for the worse here, though this isn’t something the Kiwis aren’t used to – 2/1 RNZIR hails from Christchurch in the South Island of New Zealand, home of the incredible Southern Alps and some of the best skiing in the Southern Hemisphere.
The STX begins on 17 September and the Kiwis are looking forward to getting underway.
It’s a fast-paced existence for the men and women of Bravo Coy, 2/1 RNZIR, who deployed to Germany just three weeks after returning to New Zealand from EX TAIAHA TOMBUK, a Five Power Defence Arrangement exercise that saw them training in the heat of the Malaysian jungle.
But despite that frantic pace, there’s no rest for this team – they’ve come all this way for the opportunity to participate in the first ‘boots on the ground’ ABCA exercise in 20 odd years.
The ability to train in the sophisticated facility available at the JMRC has seen the Kiwis out in ‘the Box’ on a daily basis over the past nine days, pausing only to take in the Bledisloe Cup rugby match at the Community Activity Centre on Saturday 13 September. One British LTCOL was quoted as saying that there is life and death – but for the Kiwis and Aussies, rugby is more important.
The weather has taken a turn for the worse here, though this isn’t something the Kiwis aren’t used to – 2/1 RNZIR hails from Christchurch in the South Island of New Zealand, home of the incredible Southern Alps and some of the best skiing in the Southern Hemisphere.
The STX begins on 17 September and the Kiwis are looking forward to getting underway.
--Nicole Munro-Johnson, New Zealand Armed Forces
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