Australians in New Zealand DPR/TV/1556 & 1557

The Australian troop carrier, HMAS Sydney, berthed in Wellington, New Zealand, on Monday (April 2 1973) with 550 soldiers of the 5th Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment, on board. They will be spending a fortnight in the country, on exercise with elements of the New Zealand Army. After a rough, four-day crossing from Australia, the soldiers lost no time going ashore for a two-day leave break, despite wet, cold and blustery conditions in Wellington. The warmth of the welcome of the people of the city made up for the weather - more than 250 families offered sightseeing tours and other hospitality. Yesterday (April 3), the 5th Battalion and 100 sailors from the Sydney marched through Wellington in the city's biggest parade of regular servicemen for almost 15 years. The centre of the city came to a standstill, as the men, led by the commanding officer of the 5 RAR, Lieutenant Colonel K. E. Newman, swung down Lambton Quay to the strains of Waltzing Matilda, played by the band of the New Zealand Army. A composite band from 5 RAR and HMAS Sydney also marched. People watching from the footpaths clapped as the marchers neared the Town Hall where the Mayor, Sir Francis Kitts, took the salute. As the rear of the column passed the dais, three Australian Iroquois helicopters, carried over on the Sydney, flew overhead.