The Royal New Zealand Navy’s Littoral Warfare Unit (LWU) is to be granted the Freedom of the Whakatāne District Charter in a special ceremony on Thursday, which will see Whakatāne become the unit's home port. A range of community and civic activities will follow the official ceremony.

The unit provides hydrographic, 'clearance diving' and mine counter measures activities to ensure that harbours and inshore waters in New Zealand, and anywhere NZ Defence Forces are deployed, can be safely accessed. Another high profile speciality is the dive team’s underwater search and rescue activities.

Mayor Tony Bonne says Whakatāne will see regular visits from the Littoral Warfare Unit for a range of activities, including important civic ceremonies such as the annual ANZAC Day commemorations.

"This will be a very special relationship and we look forward to having the unit’s 60-strong team visit our District,” he says. "The LWU plays an important role in our defence capabilities and it’s an honour that Whakatāne has been chosen as their home port."

Mr Bonne says the decision to enter a formal relationship arose after an initial conversation with Lieutenant Commander Greg Camburn, the guest speaker at last year’s ANZAC Day ceremony.

The Charter ceremony will be held at Mitchell Park (on Richardson Street, adjacent to the Whakatāne RSA) at 10.00am on Thursday and will be followed by a Charter Parade around the CBD area, culminating in a public 'mix and mingle' session (approximate start-time 11.00am) in the Margaret Mahy Courtyard at the Civic Centre. On Friday, unit members will undertake track clearance and maintenance activities on the Ngā Tapuwae o Toi Walkway. And on Saturday, the Navy personnel and local ATC brigade will host a kids' pool party at the Whakatāne Aquatic Centre between 10.30am and 1.00pm, with lots of fun games and a sausage sizzle on the menu.