An upgrade of the Royal New Zealand Navy's frigates which will give them 10 more years of life is running $100 million over budget and a year behind schedule.

COMMENT: It is not okay for any warships from anywhere to come to New Zealand, nuclear-armed or not.

Navy vessel HMNZS Otago leaves from Devonport Naval Base this afternoon for a two-month stint in the southwest Pacific, where it will do fishing patrols and visit several ports.

China is "highly likely" to send a ship to upcoming Navy celebrations, as a decision on whether the United States attends draws closer.

Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee says top visiting US Navy Secretary Ray Mabus did not raise an invite for a US Navy vessel to visit for the Navy's 75th anniversary.

Labour says reason Navy's newest vessels haven't left port in years is due to lack of skilled personnel to staff them.

Welcome to my regular series entitled "My Light Bulb Moment". This column highlights a "blinding flash of insight" business, cultural and sports leaders have experienced, and how this changed their lives forever.

Police believe they have found a body inside the sunken Jubilee fishing trawler on the seabed off Canterbury.

The Commander of the US Navy's Pacific fleet was greeted by blustery winds and spitting rain as he touched down in Wellington this morning.

A naval officer approved an $80k renovation for a cliff-top $3.15m heritage villa owned by the taxpayer - then moved in once the work was completed.

Prosecutions against those behind fishing vessels that tangled with the Royal NZ Navy over summer have been hailed as a "giant step forward" by Foreign Minister Murray McCully.

Prosecutions against illegal fishers who tangled with the New Zealand navy have been hailed as a “giant step forward” by Foreign Minister Murray McCully.

An act of skill and courage has earned Lieutenant Simon Wasley a Queen's Birthday Honour.

Lieutenant Commander Tim Garvan joined the navy as a teenager to avoid a student loan. At 31, he is now the captain of HMNZS Otago.

The New Zealand Defence Force is investigating an assault allegedly centring around a more senior staff member "ill-treating" a lower ranked naval rating.

Royal New Zealand Navy signals expert Shayna Keenan can talk with flags.

The commanding officer of the navy ship that was outlasted by three ageing fishing vessels in the Southern Ocean has responded to critics who labelled the operation a disaster.

The Royal New Zealand Navy is being urged to escalate a standoff with two illegal fishing vessels in the Southern Ocean, with calls last night for a show of firepower.

New Zealand's Navy is in a standoff with two fishing vessels, whose crews are resisting attempts to be boarded.

The Royal New Zealand Navy has discovered a third fishing vessel with illegal catch in the Southern Ocean.

Royal NZ Navy officials were last night seeking permission to board two fishing vessels in the Southern Ocean which have been found with illegal catches.

The New Zealand navy has intercepted fishing vessels with illegal catch in the Southern Ocean.

Auckland has been NZ's naval hub for almost 175 years but few know the Navy's establishment in Devonport was marred by a brutal triple murder and scandal.

Kiwi veterans joined nearly 600 sailors for a parade down Auckland's Queen Street this morning to mark the 75th Anniversary of the Battle of the River Plate.

With bells clanging, whistles screeching and hundreds of booted sailors clattering to their firing stations, boy seaman Bob Batt had every right to be scared.