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24 April 2007
Members of 1 RNZIR will be stepping out in new insignia following a visit from Honorary Colonel Lieutenant General (Retired) Sir John Mace, KBE, CB, OBE in early April. 
With the introduction of NZLAV and the development of the CAV concept, a unit dress distinction was sought in order to enhance the unit esprit de corps and give all members posted to 1 RNZIR, regardless of Corps, a sense of belonging to a Cavalry unit.
The new dress distinction was approved by the Chief of Army and incorporates:
Headdress
A green and red diamond shaped patch will be sewn on the beret behind the badge in recognition of the approved unit colours of 1 RNZIR and RNZAC. The beret badge will be painted matt black and the ONWARD unit badge of the RNZIR will be worn by all personnel posted to the unit.
Stable Belt
All personnel posted to the unit will wear the RNZIR Stable Belt, which traces its history back to the alliance formed between RNZIR and the 1st Battalion [The Durham Light Infantry] during operations in Borneo in 1966.
The new dress distinction heralds a new era for 1 RNZIR and Commanding Officer Lieutenant Colonel John Howard was presented with the beret and new beret badge by Sir John Mace.
Sir John Mace was presented with the Pingat Jasa Malaysia Medal, a medal instituted by His Majesty the King of Malaysia to commemorate service by the British Commonwealth Forces to safeguard Malaysia’s sovereignty during the Communist Insurgency and the Indonesian Confrontation. The PJM Medal honours the valour and sacrifices made by the New Zealand Forces who served in Malaya/ Malaysia for at least 90 days, between 31 August 1957 and 31 December 1966.
Medals and awards presented
A total of 27 personnel received the New Zealand General Service Medal for Afghanistan and 17 for the Solomon Islands. Many of the recipients also received the New Zealand Operational Service Medal.
- The New Zealand Special Service Medal (Asian Tsunami) was awarded to Sergeant MR Macaulay
- The Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment 20 Year Certificate was presented to WO2 J Moohan
- The Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment 20 Year Certificate presented to WO2 RP Fraser
- The Regular Force Warrant Officer Parchment was presented to WO2 N McQuinlan
- SSGT SG Murphy and SGT MTT Makea were each awarded The Long Service and Good Conduct Medal
- The Basic Static Line Parachute Qualification Badge was presented to Pte DWR Conchie
- Private DP Quintus was promoted to Lance Corporal
- Lance Corporal DJ Medland was promoted to Corporal
- Lance Corporal GA Burrows was promoted to Corporal
This page was last reviewed on 30 April 2007 and is current.
