The exercise, involving both air and ground crews, will be conducted across the greater Sydney, Wollongong and Goulburn regions. Soldiers and aviators will face complex, high-end simulated threat scenarios designed to test their readiness and co-ordination in realistic conditions.

Flight NZ261 landed in Adelaide at 9:30pm on Tuesday aboard the A320neo ZK-NHB, taking off again for Christchurch shortly after 7:15am on Wednesday. Flights will operate twice weekly on Mondays and Fridays until 27 March 2026, adding around 15,000 seats on the route.

In partnership with Griffith University and RMIT University, the classes, beginning in January next year, will initially offer four micro-credentials, with an additional eight courses coming in 2026 following feedback from the first student intake.

Despite its new focus on ACMI services, the airline says its regular passenger transport flights are here to stay, having recently taken over the Lord Howe Island route from QantasLink.