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Funding for a massive upgrade to our old military aircraft is moving forward, even as the country heads for its bleakest economic outlook for decades.
Top of the shopping list is the C-130J Super Hercules, which is intended to replace the Royal NZ Air Force Hercules transport aircraft that has been in use since the 1960s.
The $ 898 million in funds comes despite the Cabinet not yet having approved the business case for the new C-130J. More money has been allocated to complete the purchase and transition in the coming years.
Defense Minister Ron Mark said the $ 1.77 billion in Defense funding, including the New Zealand Defense Force and the Defense Ministry, was “critical to our national resilience and had been deferred for too long. “
As part of that, he said buying the C-130J “remains my top priority as Minister of Defense.”
Mark’s position on defense funding prompted New Zealand’s first MP to signal the coalition agreement between his party and the Labor Party.
The funding supported NZ First’s “comprehensive and ambitious vision” for the future of the New Zealand Defense Force “and this funding will maintain our momentum in delivering that plan.”
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Other funds included $ 666 million for the Army, Navy, and Air Force for front-line capacity, communications and computer technology, and ongoing updates at NZDF bases.
Similar funds were allocated to support Mark’s Strategic Defense Policy Statement, released in 2018 with the goal of directing the NZDF’s focus on local and regional affairs, and strengthening its ability to project New Zealand’s presence in the Pacific. It also expanded NZDF’s role to include actions such as addressing the impact of climate change.
Other funds included $ 840,000 for Veterans Affairs from Covid-19 funds to improve the exchange of information across health systems, recognizing those who consider themselves elderly and vulnerable people who may have difficulty visiting doctors in some alert conditions.
Money in the Budget will support previously announced projects: four new patrol planes, a new dive and hydrographic ship for the Navy, and doubling the size of the Army’s Limited Service Volunteers scheme that aims to give youth the attitude and the skills necessary to get a job.
Defense documents showed signs that those areas outside of high-value payments and purchases had been cut, and many did not meet funds from previous years.
They also showed that capital projects, including upgrade capacity, had been financed through cuts to funds earmarked for other areas. Increasing security at NZDF was funded as a priority, using money that had been set aside for some base upgrade jobs.
