An opportunity to experience how an allied air force operates and explore a country on the other side of the world was too good to ignore. For RAF People Operations Specialist, Corporal Murphy, being posted out to the Royal New Zealand Air Force Base Ohakea was a very rewarding opportunity.
Corporal Murphy had applied to take part in Exercise Longlook, an exchange programme between the United Kingdom and New Zealand. The aim of the programme is to deploy squadron personnel from the UK to New Zealand, and for the Defence Force to send a squadron to the UK on the return flight. The exchange programme enables both teams to work outside of their comfort zones and identify different ways of working. However, personnel from each country can now apply and deploy as individual augmentees.
Arriving in New Zealand in September 2024 from RAF Brize Norton, Corporal Murphy spent four months at Ohakea; later returning home to the UK in time for Christmas.
If you put the work into the exchange application process, you are rewarded with great opportunities. I have been able to travel to the other side of the world, not knowing a single person, but still feel like I am part of the wider output/family of air power and Defence within a different organisation.
Corporal Murphy
Corporal Murphy’s application was originally based on a study comparing the Defence Force and RAF welfare pillars. However, her focus took a shift to review and analyse the New Zealand Force’s ‘Operation Respect’, which focuses on unacceptable sexual behaviours and also covers bullying, harassment and discrimination.
In the UK, Corporal Murphy works within the RAF’s Service Discipline team and she was able to share her experiences with the Operation Respect team.
I was able to look into the Defence Force policy and highlight similarities, differences and also suggest and provide the Senior Leader Team with alternative options and recommendations, which has positively impacted the review of Operation Respect.
After meetings with the Warrant Officer of the Defence Force, Warrant Officer of the Air Force and the Operation Respect team, Corporal Murphy linked both nations’ policy points of contact together, enabling a stronger and more agile approach to each organisation’s policies around inappropriate behaviours.
During my tour, I have been able to visit all three Defence Force air bases, completed the Tūrangawaewae induction programme at Ohakea, the mentoring scheme, the School to Skies programme in Auckland and spent a week with recruits at the Command Recruit Training Squadron in Woodbourne.
The exercise provided opportunities to maintain and strengthen the international relationships between the two countries, despite their geographical location.
I have met some amazing personnel within the Defence Force and I will be forever grateful for their warm welcome and kindness.
Upon reflection of her time out in New Zealand, Corporal Murphy said:
It has taught me no matter where you go in the military you will always feel a sense of belonging.
I believe this experience has encouraged me to face my fears. I used to suffer with extreme home sickness when dealing with change and new environments, (fellow recruits from basic training would definitely remember), leading me to always remain in my comfort zone. The most significant fear for me was completing the application form and sending the email; knowing I could be potentially going to the other side of the world, on my own, solo-travelling and not knowing a single person when I got there. Additionally, another significant fear I faced, was taking part in a tandem jump and being one to one with the edge of a C-130 Hercules’ ramp, 13,000-ft off the ground, knowing full well I had no control once I left the platform.
Being able to witness New Zealand’s culture and nature with my own eyes, are experiences that I will forever be grateful for. It has taught me that no matter how nervous or anxious you about leaving your comfort zones, the regret would also be there in the back of your mind if you don’t take the opportunities given to you. To be offered a seat at the table to support and provide comparisons to the New Zealand Defence Force, on how the Armed Forces in the UK process and approach unacceptable behaviours, has enabled me to develop my leadership skills and improved my strategic knowledge of how policies may appear different for different cultures and backgrounds. I can now utilise the skills I have learnt about myself and another military organisation to contribute and support future changes within the Royal Air Force and how I lead as a People Operations Specialist.
