WAIOURU, New Zealand — The whump of exploding 105 mm artillery rounds reverberate across the “battlefield” as Kiwi soldiers in NZLAV 8x8 armored vehicles race across a valley to assault a network of enemy trenches.
Witnessed by Defense News on Aug. 27, this live-fire episode formed part of the New Zealand Army’s largest exercise of 2026.
Called Hill 60 – named after the final battle in the Gallipoli campaign in World War I – the 16-day training event was a key check for the army as it prepares for the multilateral Exercise Talisman Sabre in Australia next year.
The drills are part of a campaign that will see the New Zealand Army aligning more and more with its Australian counterpart.
Plan ANZAC
This ambition is reflected in Plan ANZAC, a bilateral agreement between the two Australasian armies. This plan was renewed on July 10, when the two army chiefs signed an updated agreement.
Maj. Gen. Rose King, New Zealand’s Chief of Army, told Defense News that the relationship with Australia “is really important.”
In “every iteration with Plan ANZAC, we’re getting stronger and more aligned. It’s how we work together and can be interoperable and interchangeable,” she said.
Building on more than 100 years of past shared experience and service, Plan ANZAC is designed to support the two nations training, deploying and operating together more effectively.
Forging a battle group
The critical part of Exercise Hill 60 was putting a Motorised Infantry Battle Group – or MIBG – through its paces. The MIBG equates to around 1,000 Kiwi soldiers, which is a sizable chunk of the army’s 4,358 active-duty personnel.
Lt. Col. Caleb Berry, commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment, explained to Defense News: “The army’s land combat output is the Motorised Infantry Battle Group. That’s our contribution to a coalition, or our ability to operate by ourselves in the region.”
During Exercise Hill 60, the MIBG tested its ability to perform as a cohesive and decisive unit under the tempo and pressure of battle.
Brig. Jason Dyhrberg, the army’s Land Component Commander, emphasized the importance of maturing the formation ahead of deploying it to Australia for next year’s Talisman Sabre exercise.
Indeed, this will be the very first overseas deployment of the MIBG.
“For us, that’s an incredible contribution within a large-scale divisional construct,” Dyhrberg noted. “It’s highly valued by our Australian ally because they’re also very busy. They also have, despite their significant scale compared to us, staffing and equipment shortfalls. So, us being able to provide a capable, well-trained battle group into the organization does add considerable value.”
Lt. Col. Berry said New Zealand’s MIBG is closely associated with Australia’s Brisbane-based 7th Brigade. The latter unit’s commander had attended Hill 60 to see Kiwi troops in action.
This affinity is due to the 7th Brigade’s particular focus on the Pacific region east and north of Australia, where New Zealand also has interests.
Australia’s two other brigades – the Darwin-based 1st Brigade and Townsville-based 3rd Brigade – focus on the littorals north of Australia and mechanized warfare, respectively.
The New Zealand Army has previously integrated with Australia’s 7th Brigade at the combat team level, but Talisman Sabre 2027 will be a true test of doing this at the battle group level.
Common equipment, quality training
During the Hill 60 exercise in the central North Island, NZLAV and Bushmaster protected vehicles helped transport troops around the battlefield. The new Bushmasters, operated in the hundreds by the Australian Army, are a reminder how the New Zealand Defence Force is aligning with Australia on an equipment level where feasible.
The Defence Capability Plan, issued in April 2025, explicitly stated: “New Zealand will seek to procure the same assets and equipment as Australia where it makes sense to do so. This will help with interoperability.”
As the NZ Army eyes future procurements such as long-range fires to replace its L119 105mm towed howitzers, systems like the HIMARS are likely to be in the frame as a contender.
Also reflecting the strong ties between the Antipodean neighbors, the New Zealand Army has adopted Australian training schemes.
For example, troops have been conducting a mortar course in Australia. Elsewhere, Australian instructors recently helped Kiwi soldiers run a three-week course on first-person-view drones.
Maj. Gen. King praised the aptitude of Kiwi soldiers, even if they are not as richly equipped as their counterparts in Australia and the United States.
“One of the things that gets told to us every time we travel is just the caliber of our people,” she said. “We train, we invest a lot in our people, because we’re small and we need to understand bigger constructs. Our people deliver wherever they go.”
Dyhrberg acknowledged New Zealand is unable replicate larger formations. However, “What we can do is produce those well-trained officers that can integrate into an Australian brigade headquarters or an American divisional headquarters, which we do quite regularly,” he said.
Gordon Arthur is an Asia correspondent for Defense News. After a 20-year stint working in Hong Kong, he now resides in New Zealand. He has attended military exercises and defense exhibitions in about 20 countries around the Asia-Pacific region.
