Rocket Lab will manufacture 18 satellites equipped with advanced sensors to track and detect missile threats.Supplied / Rocket Lab
Rocket Lab has scored its largest single contract to date.
The New Zealand-founded company’s latest deal with the US Space Development Agency (SDA) is worth US$816 million (NZ$1.4b).
It will manufacture 18 satellites equipped with advanced sensors to track and detect missile threats, including from hypersonic missiles of the kind recently developed by Russia.
“Demand for resilient, scalable and affordable space systems continues to grow, and this award demonstrates that Rocket Lab is uniquely positioned to lead the charge in delivering solutions that meet the needs of national security,” Rocket Lab founder and chief executive Peter Beck said.
“As the only commercial provider producing both spacecraft and payloads in-house for the SDA Tracking Layer, Rocket Lab is delivering a truly disruptive solution that combines speed, resilience and affordability.
“This contract underscores that Rocket Lab’s vertically integrated approach isn’t just a competitive advantage – we’re enabling a fundamental shift in how national security space programs are executed.”
Rocket Lab already had a US$515m (NZ$869m) satellite contract.
This week, the company launched its fourth spacecraft into orbit for the United States Department of War. The launch, named ‘Don’t Be Such A Square’, lifted off from Wallops Island in Virginia to deploy four DiskSat spacecraft in a 550km low Earth orbit, five months ahead of schedule.
Rocket Lab’s next launch, ‘The Wisdom God Guides’, is scheduled for Sunday evening. It will be the company’s 79th launch and the 21st this year.
The client is Q-shu Pioneers of Space, a Japan-based Earth-imaging company, and the launch will be streamed live on Rocket Lab’s YouTube channel.
Follow all the action, as two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua takes on YouTuber-turned-professional boxer Jake Paul at the Kaseya Center in Miami.
The main card is expected to start about 4pm NZT.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Jake Paul and Anthony Joshua.Leonardo Fernandez
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
New Zealand needs to step up its approach to the increase in organised criminal groups targeting the country, Casey Costello says.RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Organised crime networks are escalating their activities in New Zealand, Associate Minister of Police Casey Costello says, announcing a new cross-agency plan to combat them.
“New Zealand and our Pacific neighbours are being increasingly targeted by organised criminal groups, who are using new technologies and new ways of operating,” she said. “We need a different, stronger and more cohesive response.”
Many New Zealand agencies have some level of responsibility for dealing with organised crime, but more work was needed to enable them to work together more effectively, Costello said on Saturday.
The change would mean better use of resources, powers and information that agencies collectively possess, and better accountability of efforts to combat organised crime.
Organised crime taking place in New Zealand included drug trafficking, scams, migrant exploitation and money laundering, harming individuals and families, legitimate businesses and the broader New Zealand economy, she said.
“The illicit drug trade alone is estimated to cost the country around $1.5 billion in social harm.
“The key thing I think we need to recognise is that organised crime is a business that will do anything it can to make a profit. They are agnostic about commodity – whether it’s people, whether it’s tobacco, whether it’s drugs, whether it’s money laundering, whether it’s scamming – whatever they can do to make money, they will do.
“We need to be pivoting and responding in a far more flexible and responsive way than we currently are.”
Some of the almost 14kg of methamphetamine and $360,000 of cash seized by police from a Mexican man posing as a tourist in Auckland.NZME / Supplied / NZ Police
A ministerial advisory group on organised crime has published a series of reports on the vulnerabilities in the country’s response to transnational crime, including revealing that government agencies typically avoid the risk of sharing data and work was needed to address the problem.
“Organised crime is organised, we are not”, and it should be recognised as the greatest threat to national security, the report, released earlier said.
It recommended urgent action, including one minister tasked with responsibility for the government’s organised crime response, an overhaul of strategy and a charter that would hold agencies accountable. It also warned the government that a “smaller, scaled back option” taken from its full recommendations, would “not achieve the results we need”.
What the newly announced plan includes:
Exploring the idea of one agency responsible for transnational and serious organised crime
Developing new methods for sharing information and data between agencies
Putting into action a package of actions on methamphetamine harm
Strengthening communities and addressing harm through ‘Resilience to Organised Crime’ initiatives.
“It’s about better accountability,” Costello said. “It’s about focusing our resources where they most need to be.
“Sometimes we get swallowed up with keeping busy and forget to identify what the outcomes are. We really want to get some strong outcomes, because organised crime effectively needs organised government to respond to it.”
However Aotearoa had some advantages when it came to tackling organised crime, she said.
“We are the envy when I go around the world and talk to other agencies. We don’t have state boundaries – we have one jurisdiction.
“We have one border. We have very straightforward legislation.
“We have a good judiciary, so we have that cohesion that should make us the very hardest border to penetrate and the easiest to enforce law in this space.”
Manta rays, which can reach up to nine metres wingtip-to-wingtip, are found in the Hauraki Gulf (file image).Supplied / Manta Watch NZ
Manta rays visiting New Zealand are under threat from pollution and boat strikes.
The Department of Conservation has assigned manta rays the threatened status after a new report found numbers were dwindling.
Their status is now ‘Threatened – Nationally Vulnerable’ when they were previously ‘Data Deficient’.
“This change represents a greater level of concern for the species than previously held,” DOC said in a statement.
The manta rays are one of 113 species who were assessed by an independent panel for the latest conservation status report about New Zealand’s chimaeras, sharks and rays.
Senior Science advisor Dr Karen Middlemiss said manta rays spend about six months in New Zealand waters each year when it’s warm.
But DOC staff often find them injured.
“In New Zealand waters the sorts of things that we find impacting them are pollution in the waters, habitat degradation, disturbance in key aggregation sites, and vessel activity can also play a role, Middlemiss said.
“We often find animals that have got evidence of boat strikes.”
Middlemiss said current estimmates suggest there are just a few thousand manta rays in New Zealand – but further data is needed to confirm this.
“We know very little about our manta ray population size, age structure, and regional connectivity with other Pacific populations.”
Basking shark from above and underwater (file image).Left Basking shark from above – credit rossbeane, some rights reserved (CC BY-SA) Right Basking shark underwater – Photo credit Greg Skomal – NOAA Fisheries Service [Public domain]
Meanwhile, Basking and Plunket’s sharks are now considered ‘Threatened – Nationally Critical’ – the last status before extinction.
“The disappearance of the basking shark from New Zealand’s shores is very concerning, and we don’t know exactly why this has happened,” Middlemiss said.
“Urgent research is required to better understand population pressures – both human induced and environmental – to inform conservation management decisions for both basking and Plunket’s sharks.”
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Layla Sae makes a break for the Black Ferns against Spain.photosport
Black Ferns loose forward Layla Sae will miss much of the 2026 season after suffering a serious knee injury on duty for her English club Harlequins.
The 25-year-old’s anterior cruciate ligament injury is likely to see Sae spend the first half of next year recuperating, with a possibility of returning for international duty late in the season in home tests against Australia and France.
The Hurricanes Poua confirmed in a statement their hard-running No.8 will miss the Super Rugby Aupiki season.
There is no chance she will play for New Zealand in the preceding Pacific Four series in April, the first matches under the eye of newly-appointed coach Whitney Hansen.
“Layla’s injury is a massive loss to the Hurricanes club. Her energy, relentlessness, humility, and openness have been – and continue to be – a cornerstone of the Poua,” said Poua head coach Hayden Triggs.
Andrew Skinner/www.photosport.nz
“Layla’s contribution and fight for the Poua in the past have been a driver for the changes the club and the team are hoping to build on in Super Rugby Aupiki 2026.
“The club will support her rehab and provide everything she needs to come back the dominant force she aims to be. She will continue to play a big part in our 2026 campaign in a support capacity, which will help the club achieve our goals next year.”
In October, Sae and Black Ferns team-mate Liana Mikaele-Tu’u signed a short-term contract to play for Harlequins in the English Premier Women’s Rugby championships, scheduled to finish in March.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
The last thing you want on a summer Christmas Day is to be hot, flustered and glued to the oven or stove when your guests arrive.
Food writer and cookbook author Kathy Paterson, who spent 20 years running an Auckland catering company, starts prepping up to two days out and even plots a time-managed plan if there’s a crowd.
The payoff is fresh food on the table with minimal stress, fewer dirty dishes, and more time to actually enjoy the presence of your guests, she says.
Dame Alison Holst left suet out of this seasonal spicy fruit mix because she liked to eat it raw. This is the perfect filling for her Christmas Mince Pies.
Food writer and food tour host Helen Jackson agrees.
“I just don’t like having all the heat and the oven and the elements all going on the day of, because it feels stressful and busy and we’ve also worked hard all year and it’s nice to be a bit more relaxed, so I do try and be more organised.”
Starters and sides
Salad dressing can often be made days in advance. (file image) Kathy Paterson also washes her greens, dries them and stores them in an airtight container so they’re ready for plating.
Unsplash / Getty Images
Think dips, sauces, dressings and robust salads. Roasted vegetable salads, pickled eggplant, stuffed tomatoes and crostini toppings are all ideal prep-ahead options.
Jackson roasts slow-cooking vegetables like beetroot and onions the day before. On the day, she’ll cook new potatoes or kumara, let everything come to room temperature, then toss it all together. Dress and add herbs or crunchy toppings at the last minute. (Crostini can be toasted ahead and stored in an airtight container.)
“The first day of the season that you get new potatoes is often Christmas Day, so that’s a given that you’re going to cook them on the stove top on the day.”
Toast crostini and prep their toppings early. (file image)
Unsplash / Maryam Sicard
Paterson peels agria potatoes the night before and keeps them submerged in cold water. Dressings — Caesar, blue cheese, mayonnaise — can be made up to a week ahead. Salad leaves can be washed, dried and stored ready to plate, but herb toppings and sauces are best chopped fresh.
For vegetarian sides, she suggests quinoa-stuffed tomatoes prepared the day before and refrigerated. Cheese boards are another opportunity to get ahead: seed crackers can be made a week in advance, and toppings like roasted tomatoes or charred red peppers mixed with labneh or soft cheese keep well. Pickled vegetables — eggplant, cauliflower, beetroot, baby carrots or mushrooms — add colour and zing and can be made ahead too.
“I know you can buy a lot of these things, but they’re so much nicer if you can make it yourself.”
Main dish
Food writer Helen Jackson.
Supplied
Ham, turkey — and especially gravy — are all prep-friendly.
Jackson removes the skin from her ham, scores it, adds the glaze and bakes it ahead, reheating on the day. If oven space allows, you can save the actual cooking for Christmas Day.
Paterson makes the glaze several days in advance and applies it the night before to really deepen the flavour when it cooks.
Brine the turkey ahead, but leave stuffing for when you cook. (file image)
Unsplash / Claudio Schwarz
For turkey, brine it 12–14 hours ahead but leave stuffing until the day of cooking, she suggests.
As a self-professed gravy enthusiast, Paterson can make it weeks ahead even. Save stock from chicken or vegetables, make the gravy, then freeze it, she says. (Tip: A spoon of Vegemite deepens colour.) For something different, she suggests an old-fashioned Cumberland sauce — made up to a week ahead with citrus zest, redcurrant jelly, port, mustard powder and ginger.
Dessert
Making tiramisu a day ahead helps the sponge fingers soak up the flavours from the liquid. (file image)
Unsplash / Karolina Grabowska
Pavlova, tiramisu, ice cream and trifle all benefit from advance planning.
Jackson bakes her pavlova base ahead and stores it, adding cream and berries just before serving. Tiramisu — classic or tropical — is always made at least a day ahead so the sponge has time to soften.
No-churn ice cream can be made days in advance and frozen. “It does need to come out of the freezer and a good 15 minutes before you scoop it because it is quite a firm ice cream,” Jackson says. (This year she’s doing a pistachio, orange and ricotta flavour inspired by a trip to Italy).
Paterson preps strawberries the morning before by hulling and refrigerating them for pav. Her mum’s routine is to bake it on Christmas Eve and leaving it to cool in the switched-off oven overnight. Meringues, meanwhile, keep for months if stored well.
Trifles are another reliable option: poach fruit like peaches and bake sponge ahead, assemble the day before, and add cream just before it hits the table.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
Gloriavale Christian Community on the West Coast, taken when it was visited by the Employment Court’s chief judge on 25 February 2023.RNZ / Jean Edwards
Parents of students who attended Gloriavale Christian School will still have “a range of options” for their children’s education, the Ministry of Education says.
Acting Hautū (leader) Te Tai Runga (South) Andrea Williams said it had only just started working through options with the families, community and other schools.
“The ministry recognises that there is a strong desire from the community for options that recognise their distinct nature and educates their children together as much as possible.
“There are a range of options the ministry is considering within the state system, which includes provision at a local school, establishing a satellite of another state school, a Te Kura Hub or a combination of these.”
Families would need to meet the criteria and be approved to enrol with Te Kura, in line with national processes, she said.
Similarly, any application from families to home school their children would be “treated on its merits”.
“There is guidance on the ministry’s website on the requirements that must be fulfilled to be granted an exemption by the Secretary for Education.”
It would not be possible for the community to set up a charter school for next year as the date for sponsors to submit applications to set up new schools in 2026 had closed, Williams said.
Gloriavale Christian School’s board has said it would challenge the ministry’s decision to cancel its registration.
However, Williams said there were no avenues for the school to do so under the Education and Training Act.
“We can’t comment on other possible avenues of appeal the school might be considering.”
Further details of plans for the children’s education would be shared once they had been confirmed, she said.
Follow all the action on day three of the Black Caps’ third test against the West Indies at Bay Oval in Mt Maunganui.
First ball is scheduled for 11am.
Black Caps squad: Tom Latham (captain), Tom Blundell (wicketkeeper), Michael Bracewell, Kristian Clarke, Devon Conway, Jacob Duffy, Zak Foulkes, Daryl Mitchell, Ajaz Patel, Glenn Phillips, Michael Rae, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson, Will Young
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
