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HMNZS Canterbury (F421), HMNZS Southland (F104), HMNZS Endeavour (A11), HMNZS Waikato (F55) and HMNZS Wellington (F69).
HMNZS Canterbury (F421), HMNZS Southland (F104), HMNZS Endeavour (A11), HMNZS Waikato (F55) and HMNZS Wellington (F69).
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. Royal Navy and Royal New Zealand Navy aircrew who tragically lost their lives here. Avengers remembered: wartime aircraft crew honoured with memorial in Wales
25 September 2025
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A tall stone monolith with a brass memorial plaque stands as a reminder in mid-Wales to three WW2 naval aviators.
More than 81 years after they were killed, the crew of a Grumman Avenger torpedo bomber have been remembered close to where their plane came down.
A wet and windy day seemed fitting for the unveiling of the monument, which rises eight feet above a mound outside the village of Llangynog in Powys, for Avenger FN 821 of 848 Naval Air Squadron, which was lost in foul weather in February 1944.
The aircraft was making a lengthy transit flight from Gosport to Kirkwall in the Orkney Islands.
The crew – all sub lieutenants – died when the torpedo bomber crashed in Rhyd Y Felin woods on a hillside north of Lake Vyrnwy.
Pilots William Sneddon Appleby, aged 24, from New Zealand and Ernest Hartley Green, 22, from Norfolk, plus Joe Lupton, a 21-year-old observer from Morley, near Leeds, were killed instantly.
The cause of the crash has never been fully established – one wing was found torn off the aircraft, some distance from the rest of the wreckage.
Given the remoteness of the crash site, the remains of the Avenger were left for many years until finally cleared.
But forest manager Jay Williams, whose grandfather served as a navigator in World War 2, was determined the crew should be remembered.
“I felt that we should not forget this generation,” he said. “The whole project snowballed from a small memorial into a community event.”
Mr Williams worked tirelessly alongside former Fleet Air Arm pilot Tim Nicholas, now an instructor at No.1 Flying Training School, to ensure the vision was fulfilled with a permanent monument and plaque.
After a blessing from RAF Shawbury’s padre Squadron Leader Harrison, there was a minute’s silence, after which a modern-day Avenger – the Beechcraft King Air operated by 750 Naval Air Squadron used to train today’s Fleet Air Arm observers – flew over the site.
Taking the salute was Commander ‘AJ’ Thompson, Officer Commanding 2 Maritime Air Wing based at Shawbury.
“It has been an honour for me representing the Royal Navy to formally recognise the crash site for the first time in 81 years,” he said.
“The memorial will be a lasting legacy to the young Royal Navy and Royal New Zealand Navy aircrew who tragically lost their lives here.”
It has been an honour for me representing the Royal Navy to formally recognise the crash site for the first time in 81 years.
Commander ‘AJ’ Thompson, Officer Commanding 2 Maritime Air Wing based at Shawbury
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New Zealand Among Five Nations Uniting For Exercise Bersama Lima
Wednesday, 24 September 2025, 2:32 pm
Press Release: New Zealand Defence Force
Ships, fighter jets and cyber teams are converging in Southeast Asia this month as five nations come together for Exercise Bersama Lima 25, a major training activity under the long-standing Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA).
More than 130 New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) personnel are taking part, alongside personnel from Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and the United Kingdom.
The Royal New Zealand Navy’s HMNZS Aotearoa is among the participating assets, which include a UK Carrier Strike Group and Royal Australian Air Force F-35A Lightning II fighter jets.
Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Singleton is leading the New Zealand detachment.
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“Bersama Lima is about building trust and teamwork with our regional partners,” he said.
“It’s a chance to strengthen relationships while sharpening the skills we need for future operations.”
Lieutenant Colonel Singleton said the aim was to enhance the NZDF’s ability to plan and conduct joint operations as part of a larger Task Force.
Over the course of the exercise, personnel will engage in diverse challenges including cyber defence, humanitarian aid and disaster relief, and anti-submarine warfare, building the skills needed to respond together in today’s complex security environment.
Speaking at the opening of the exercise, Commander of the Armed Forces of Malaysia, General Tan Sri Hj Mohd Nizam bin Hj Jaffar, said Bersama Lima reflected the shared commitment of all five nations.
“This exercise deepens our collective commitment to regional security in the spirit of camaraderie,” he said.
“It sharpens our ability to act as one and fosters a greater understanding of one another.”
Established in 1971, the FPDA remains Southeast Asia’s only multilateral defence arrangement. More than five decades later, it continues to foster cooperation, security and enduring partnerships between its five member nations.
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HMNZS Otago – ‘Obsolete systems’ part of $35m reboot to fill in for sunk navy ship
RNZ
24 Sep, 2025 01:16 PM2 mins to read
The HMNZS Otago has been parked at Devonport Naval base since 2022. Photo / RNZ, Ian Telfer
By Phil Pennington of RNZ
After sinking the $100 million HMNZS Manawanui survey ship off Samoa 11 months ago, the Navy is spending $35m to start up a ship not used for three years.
The HMNZS Otago has been parked up at Devonport Naval base since 2022, when the navy ran too short of personnel to run it.
The Defence Force says getting the offshore patrol vessel going again will take till the middle of next year, followed by tests, before it can go back into service.
“The reactivation involves significant engineering work to replace obsolete systems and restore operational readiness,” it told RNZ.
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That included overhauling the engines and putting in a new water ballast treatment system.
The costs are being paid out of baseline funding.
“New funding was not requested from the Government.”
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It must achieve what is called “Operational Class Certification” through the Lloyd’s Register before it can sail again.
The Manawanui was listed as a $77m write-off in the last Budget, on top of $32m spent on clean-up and salvage, though the wreck itself remains underwater on a reef off the Samoan island of Upolu, to the discontent of some local villagers.
Its sinking was put down to a catalogue of failures by the Navy, including undertraining, and not understanding how the ship operated.
Despite the $35m injection, the Otago will not be able to take on the Manawanui’s specialist dive and hydrographic tasks.
It will instead do fishery patrols, border protection work, and research and supply, and provide a “presence” in the Pacific.
“This reactivation is part of our broader effort to increase fleet availability and responsiveness, while we assess long-term capability needs through the maritime fleet renewal programme,” the NZDF said.
It decided early on after the sinking not to replace Manawanui.
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The first four years of the fleet renewal, through to 2029, would revolve around acquiring maritime drones, not ships, to give a chance for emerging tech to trigger “transformational change for the Navy”, the Defence Capability Plan released in April said.
Dive and hydrographic surveys would be undertaken by “other platforms”, it said.
