Welcome to the New Zealand Sappers Association Website
The Corps of Royal New Zealand Engineers, which celebrated its hundredth birthday in October 2002, has a proud record of service in both war and peace.
The men who filled the ranks of the Corps in its first fifty years were the original Militia and included British Engineer Officers and other ranks who, in both military and civilian guise contributed significantly to the building and development of New Zealand and its essential infrastructure. Some of the earlier tasks these early engineers were involved with included the basis of the Ministry of Works, territorial and infrastructure agencies and local authorities, central Governmental Departments, as they contributed to provide the establishment and development of much of New Zealand's early:
 |
Airfields, Ports, Railways and Roading network, including Bridging and Culverting of all shapes and sizes, as well as related utility services; |
|
Communications Systems (Postal and Telegraph) and |
|
Mapping and Surveying (e.g. Major Heaphy and the Heaphy Track) |
| Water catchment, national parks, river and irrigation systems, refuse, waste water and sewerage disposal and treatment; |
| Utility infrastructure (electricity, gas, water, etc), including generation, distribution/transmission and supply; and |
| Building construction and housing development and so on. |
During the two world wars the Kiwi Sappers made an immense contribution to the war effort, both on the battlefield and behind, by:
| Laying or lifting mines in the front line; |
| Constructing bridges, often under fire; |
|
Acting as infantry soldiers; |
| A wide range of both constructive and destructive demolitions; |
| Building or improving airfields, harbours/ports, roads and railroads and logistical installations; |
|
Improving local infrastructure and industrial and supply bases; |
| Re-establishing and support of local infrastructure and development; |
| Provision of water, electricity and related control and distribution systems and disposal and treatment infrastructure; and |
| Other general engineering support, such as seeking and development of construction resources (milling trees, quarrying, etc.), field defences and protection, provision of bunding and hardstands and so on. |
Since 1945, regular Sappers have played an increasingly important role in the New Zealand Army. Apart from their efforts in several smaller conflicts in Asia, they have applied their skills to a variety of tasks in support of the community and, more recently, have been heavily involved in peacekeeping operations, including those in East Timor, Afghanistan, Bosnia, Iraq, Sinai and Solomon Islands from 1999 to the present day. Disaster relief in the form of structural rebuilding and repair of services among the South Pacific islands is also an important task on an as-needed basis.
The Kiwi Sapper has an enviable record of courage, dedication and determination - qualities that have established the Corps reputation for exemplary service over a hundred years.
The New Zealand Sappers Association website has been created to help those involved in the Corps to have a home and focal point on the World Wide Web. To find out more follow the link to the Sappers Association Page.
