Bulford Kiwi restored with RAF Chinook support

Ten tonnes of chalk have been dropped by an RAF Chinook helicopter on to the Bulford Kiwi, a chalk figure set into Beacon Hill above the village of Bulford on Wiltshire’s Salisbury Plain, as part of its annual restoration.

The Kiwi was cut into the hillside in 1919 by soldiers of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force (NZEF) who were waiting to return home at the end of the First World War. Measuring 130 metres in length – according to the British Army – it was declared a scheduled monument in 2017, recognising it as a nationally important archaeological site.

98,950 New Zealanders served in NZEF units overseas during the First World War; 18,058 died as a result of the conflict.

The chalk dropped by the Chinook was raked into place by volunteers and personnel from the Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO), the New Zealand High Commission, local conservation groups, contractor Landmarc, the 3rd (UK) Division Signal Regiment and Operation Nightingale.

Richard Osgood, DIO’s senior archaeologist, said the annual re-chalking reinforces the bonds between the UK and New Zealand. He noted that DIO is responsible for 772 scheduled monuments across the Ministry of Defence estate, ‘dating from the pre-historic era right up to the Cold War.’ Although the Bulford Kiwi is among the youngest, he described it as being of ‘national and international importance, given its association with the Armed Forces of New Zealand’ – and as a reminder of the sacrifices made in the First World War.

To mark the restoration, a waiata – a traditional Māori song – and a kukuri dance, which blends Māori haka traditions with the dance of the Nepalese Gurkhas, were performed at the site.

Operation Nightingale, which began on Salisbury Plain in 2011, is a UK military archaeology initiative that uses fieldwork and archaeological digs to support the recovery of wounded, injured and sick military personnel and veterans.

Sources

• Well-loved Wiltshire Kiwi gets makeover, GOV.UK, April 2026
• RAF Chinook helicopter used to restore chalk Bulford Kiwi, BBC News, April 2026
• Bulford’s Kiwi created by New Zealand soldiers gets annual refresh, British Army, September 2023
• First World War by the numbers, Manatū Taonga – Ministry for Culture and Heritage, updated September 2025