A further $957 million over four years will be spent on Defence Force activities, personnel and property.

A spokesperson later confirmed this largely operational spending was additional money in the coming Budget, and was separate to the $12b estimated spend over 15 years from the Defence Capability Plan.

Defence Minister Judith Collins announced the spending in a pre-Budget announcement alongside Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters, Associate Defence Minister Chris Penk, and top brass from the Defence Force at Whenuapai Air Force base in Auckland.

She confirmed the government would look to purchase five new helicopters, but exactly when they would arrive would depend on a business case being developed before the end of the year.

The navy previously had a fleet of eight Seasprite helicopters but that was now down to five, with three used for parts as they neared the end of their service, she said.

It was very important to replace them, she said.

"Let's put it this way, as soon as we can do it for the right helicopter at the right time. So the Seasprites are due to end service in the next few years, so it's got to be within those next few years.

"The New Zealand Defence Force has shown an absolute brilliance at being able to keep classic planes going forever, it's extraordinary, so these are overworked all right. They're on ships, they're going out doing patrols, they're searching for people ... you can do a lot with drones but you can't pick people out of the sea.

"As a maritime nation we are prioritising naval capability. The new helicopters will be able to go further and carry larger loads, including weapons, personnel and equipment - all of which is critical for Defence to protect New Zealand and New Zealanders."

The remaining $957m would be spread over four years (figures rounded to the nearest million), going towards:

• $150m a year for the Defence Force to sail, fly, patrol and train more often
• $39m a year for military allowances
• $20m a year for international deployments
• $26m a year for critical estate maintenance
• $15m a year to maintain NZDF's digital and information capability
• $8m a year to provide for civilian staff pay increases
• $3m a year for essential engagement with international partners
• $8m a year to support military organisational support functions, like educational resources and defence sport
• An additional $1m in short term funding (not annual) to enable Veterans' Affairs to process and manage applications for support from Veterans

The spending was the first confirmation from the $12b the government set out in its Defence Capability Plan unveiled nearly a month ago, which set New Zealand on a path to spending 2 percent of GDP on defence by 2032/33.

"It is very clear that New Zealand is not immune from the increasing tensions being felt throughout the world," Collins said.

"Our personnel are being called upon to go more places, more often and for longer to play New Zealand's part in contributing to global security. This funding will enable them to do that."

Collins said she would have more to say about defence investments when the Budget was released on 22 May.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon at the Royal New Zealand Air Force base in Auckland. Photo: RNZ / Calvin Samuel

Luxon said the focus was on ensuring NZDF had the personnel in place and bringing new assets into the system, but signalled defence could be a priority for additional new spending.

"If we have more money, if our economy is doing better, of course we'll tip more money into it as we go," he said.

"It comes from a place of us as a new government saying 'look, we cannot have economic prosperity without defence and security. We're living in an Indo-Pacific region that is more geostrategically contested and competitive. We see rising tensions through the world but also through our region.

"It's really important you don't just spout off with your values and your words, you've actually got to follow it up with some actions and some commitment."

The previous day, Collins released statistics showing Defence Force attrition rates were below 9 percent, down from a peak of 15.8 percent at the end of 2022.

"We've sort of knocked attrition on the head," she said. "It's unbelievable how that attrition has dropped. I am going to say: big promise, that while I'm the Minister of Defence I'll never ask Defence to stand outside MIQ facilities and not do the job that they're asked to do in the first place, I think that had a huge impact on them."

The current rates of attrition were "healthy", she said.