A former air force sergeant and several former volunteer firefighters are among 78 new police constables about to hit the beat.

Kiwi soldiers were confronted with a "chaotic scene" when they rushed to rescue survivors of a plane crash in Papua New Guinea, the Defence Force says.

The Four Nations Maritime Rugby Cup kicked off when the Royal New Zealand Navy took on the United States Marine Corps at the Devonport Naval Base yesterday.

A former high-ranking Auckland police officer investigated for allegedly harassing a prostitute before quitting the force has started his own private investigation company.

A re-elected National Government would keep all current military bases open and operational, Defence Minister Jonathan Coleman says.

The HMNZS Canterbury returns to Auckland after 3 months overseas service in the Pacific.

First he was decorated for valour after carrying a critically wounded comrade to safety through enemy fire in Afghanistan.

A young soldier who died exactly 100 years ago has been officially acknowledged as the first New Zealand casualty of WWI.

The son of a WWII prisoner of war and hero of the Battle of Crete who admitted stealing nearly $90,000 from his dead father's veterans' pension will only have to repay $4500.

New Zealand troops are honing their warfighting skills alongside Australian and United States personnel in Australia, the Defence Force says.

A soldier faced disciplinary action after he set off a Claymore mine in a live firing exercise in Afghanistan, injuring himself and another soldier.

When an armour-piercing bullet hit Private Dion Taka, he rolled underneath his Humvee and wondered if he would die.

Survivor of the Anzac Day helicopter crash Sergeant Stevin Creeggan has endured years of pain and humiliating treatment from the Air Force, but his family are speaking out.

Air force commanders allowed a dangerous and deadly culture of rule-breaking that ultimately resulted in the deaths of three young airmen, a court has found.

The Defence Force has apologised after staff damaged rooms at a hotel in Niue and says the matter is under investigation by military police.

A Kiwi sniper fighting in Afghanistan was killed by friendly fire after a US fighter pilot failed to enter attack co-ordinates into his onboard computer, an inquest has heard.

NZ is the only non-European country to make the top 10 of the 'Good Country Index' which measures 125 countries on how they give to the world's 'greater good'.

Two inquiries have begun into the award of an $80,000 military contract after the Defence Minister was told the private company doing the work was owned and run by serving personnel.

The New Zealand Defence Force conducted High Explosive Aerial training for a media contingent today, dropping a Mark 82 general purpose high explosive bomb from an P-3K2 Orion at their Kaipara Bombing Range.

Army bosses say it's "unlikely" that 9,000 assault rifles, hated by Kiwi soldiers for being under-powered and unreliable, will be sold to other militaries.

Former corporal Willie Apiata, holder of the Victoria Cross, admits he still finds it hard to think of himself as a hero and is quick to bump off the title to someone else he thinks is worthy of it - his mother.

Nicolas Sarkozy thought it was a neat idea: sell Russia two advanced warships and open up a lucrative market for France's troubled armaments industry.

Two army recruits who braved a drunk and aggressive crowd to help a man king-hit at an Auckland bar have been recognised for their "selfless act of bravery".