“Reconnaissance being sneaky observation of enemy targets.”
The exercises will look like small groups patrolling and gathering information about a mock enemy and various terrains from concealed locations.
He said these would be taking place in forest and bush areas around Brunswick and Santoft and urban reconnaissance in areas across town including the wharf and the Whanganui River.
“They’ll be learning how to observe enemy targets and report information back to inform high-level operations.”
If soldiers did the exercises correctly, people in the city wouldn’t even realise the soldiers were there.
“If we do everything right you actually won’t see the troop guys doing their thing, cause they’ll be quite sneaky and concealed inside buildings.”
However, some may notice other army personnel dressed as the enemy purposefully acting suspiciously as part of the exercises, but these people would not be in obvious or well-populated places.
There may also be military vehicle movement through these areas, but they wouldn’t disrupt residents’ normal routines.
Soldiers will be operating with weapons in the area and blank firing activities may occur.
Finn Williams is a multimedia journalist for the Whanganui Chronicle. He joined the Chronicle in early 2022 and regularly covers stories about business, events and emergencies. He also enjoys writing opinion columns on whatever interests him.
