Antiquated thinking: reply to Navy call

Press, 12 October 1976, Page 2

Antiquated thinking: reply to Navy call

PA Hamilton The Royal New Zealand Navy was accused of antiquated thinking, in the vzake of a warning that immediate action to renew its ageing warships is needed to save the force.

“The problem with the Navy is that it’s still fighting the last war,” the acting Leader of the Opposition (Mr Tizard) said from Auckland yesterday—in a call for the integration of New Zealand’s Armed Forces.

In a counter, the Dominion president of the Returned Services Association (Mr Douglas Leuchars) called for an early decision from the Government about replacing the Navy’s main four-frigate fighting force, and an increase in the Defence budget of at least 20 per cent to “maintain military preparedness.” These two calls were a sequel to a short address by the Chief of Naval Staff (Rear Admiral J. F. McKenzie) to the local branch of the Navy League in Dunedin on Saturday. He said that to operate adequately in the 1980 s, the Navy’s power had to be reestablished, its manpower increased and its ships renewed.

Mr Tizard said yesterday that Navy thinking on its requirements was "absolutely outdated.” Naval heads were still thinking of the Navy providing protection for convoys against submarines.

"Nuclear submarines aren’t worried about convoys; they are there to fire nuclear warheads,” he said. “Some of tlie submarines can now go faster than our frigates, anyway.

“If there is another war, it will be over very quickly —there won’t be any convoys to protect. The problem with the Navy is that it is still fighting the last war.’’

Mr Tizard said that rather than using the pending 200mile fishing zone as an opportunity to lobby for more big ships, the Navy should be planning to phase out its four frigates. The frigates had only a short range, and were sophisticated ships with a narrow range of uses, he said.

"New Zealand could go bankrupt trying to patrol the whole 200-mile zone, and to suggest sending a frigate out there to do it is ridiculous. What we need are air patrols to cover the area, and small surface craft to intercept any illegal intrusions by foreign vessels.

"It’s about time the Navy came to its senses as far as its needs in the 1970 s are concerned.” Mr Tizard said that now—in the light of the country’s economic situation — there was a greater urgency than ever for the Armed Forces to be integrated. “The Navy is fighting hard not to integrate,” he said, saying that the Labour Party policy had always supported integrated defence.

Mr Leuchars said a decision on a replacement of the frigates was needed now, because of the rapidly rising cost of the ships—estimated to be about S4SM for a single frigate with “the bare, unsophisticated essentials.”

The Defence budget should be increased by at least 20 per cent to allow for inflation alone, he said.

“The Forces are definitely not getting a reasonable share of Government funds. The percentage of Government funds for defence is slipping all the time and this must be reversed.”

The conditions of service also had to be raised, to continue to keep up the numbers of regulars. This was essen-

tial "for the security of the nation.”

Morale in the forces was “not as good as it could be.” Mr Leuchars said that sufficient integration existed in the New Zealand Armed Forces, and there would be no economic advantage in integrating them further. The status of the three services had to be maintained; pride in service and a sense of autonomy was important. “What’s the point in making them all wear the same uniforms,” he said. There seems little chance, however, of early action along the lines of the R.S.A. call. The Minister of Defence (Mr McCready) says the development of the Armed Forces is tied to the economic situation, and until the economy picks up there is little hope of any largescale replacements of ships. The Press Association reports political sources as saying that firm decisions on the future shape of the navy will not be made until it is clear the role the Navy will have in relation to the 200mile fishing zone.