The Royal New Zealand Navy formed part of an international drug bust in the Middle East that saw $495 million worth of drugs seized.

Four RNZN personnel were part of an operation aimed to support counterterrorism and counternarcotics work in Bahrain that saw more than 22 tonnes of illicit drugs destroyed between January and July.

The drugs included hashish, heroin, methamphetamine and fenethylline tablets, with an estimated wholesale value of more than $495 million NZD, the New Zealand Defence Force said.

Around seven tonnes of the overall haul was heroin and methamphetamine.

The Kiwi personnel formed part of the Combined Maritime Forces’, which was led by the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy, and included personnel from the Royal Navy, Royal Air Force and Italy’s Marina Militaire.

The operation hoped to prevent criminal and terrorist organisations from carrying out operations and illegally moving people, weapons, and income-generating narcotics.

It oversaw a vast area, from the Gulf of Oman in the north, across the vast Indian Ocean, and down as far as the Mozambique Channel in the south.

Lieutenant Michael Linehan, one of our four RNZN personnel, said the deployment gave him the opportunity to try operating from the shore, having previously spent his career at sea.

“It was a great experience to meet mariners from so many different countries, see maritime operations from the other side, and work together with other nations cooperating as a coalition force,” Linehan said.

Royal New Zealand Air Force officer Brett Clayton of the Royal New Zealand Air Force added that it had been a “privilege to be part of successful mission and work with other nations which had the common goal of stopping the flow of narcotics".