Fire Callsign Types

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Below is a table of appliance callsign suffix against appliance type. Typical examples of appliance callsigns may be:

  • 'Avalon 414' being Avalon Station (41), Appliance Callsign 4 (HEM with Pump)
  • 'Auckland 2018' being Auckland City Station (20), Appliance Callsign 18 (HAZMAT/Command Unit)
  • 'Upper Hutt Rural 9475' being Upper Hutt Rural Fire (94), Appliance Callsign 75 (Rural Tanker).

Callsigns when written are often abbreviated with the first four letters of the station name followed by the appliance callsign, for example, Auckland 2018 is often abbreviated as 'AUCK2018'. When heard on the radio, stations may omit the the Station Name all together ('2014') as a form of shorthand, but this is not official, and can risk confusion, as station numbers are repeated several times across New Zealand (but the combination of station name (including abbreviated version) along with the number, are not.


Type Description
1 Pump
2 Pump
3 Pump
4 Hydraulic Elevating Monitor (HEM) with Pump (FENZ Type 4)
5 Hydraulic Elevating Platform (HEP ) (Snorkel) (FENZ Type 5)
6 Turntable Ladder (FENZ Type 6)
7 Pump Rescue Tender (PRT)
8 Heavy Rescue (HRT) or Technical Rescue
9 Light Rescue Tender
10 Four Wheel Drive / Rural Unit
11 Tanker
12 Hose Layer
13 Foam Tender
14 Command Unit
15 BA Tender
16 HAZMAT & Decontamination Unit
17 Salvage Tender
18 HAZMAT / Command UnitNote 1
19 Courier/Van/"Other". Sometimes used by the second vehicle in an Operational Support Unit.
20 LRV (Light Response Vehicle)
21 Bulldozer
22 Canteen Unit (was Flat-Deck Truck)
23 Sea Rescue Unit
24 CAFS(compressed air foam system) 4x4
25 Smoke Chaser
26 Operational Support (until ~2012, also Fire Police Unit)
27 Helicopter
28 General Purpose Truck (Tip, Curtainsider, etc)
29 Brigade Van or other Support Vehicle
30 Rural Trailer Unit
31 RFO (Rural Fire Officer)
32 Pump (HAZMAT Capable)
33 Medical Co-responder Unit
35 Pump Technical Rescue (PTR) (Technical Rescue + Pump)Note 2
36 Helicopter Support Unit/Trailer?
38 Rural Tanker (Operated by an Urban Brigade)
40 FSO (Fire Safety Officer)
41 FSO (Fire Safety Officer)
42 FSO (Fire Safety Officer)
43 FSO (Fire Safety Officer)
44 FSO (Fire Safety Officer)
45 FSO (Fire Safety Officer)
51 Relief Pump
52 Relief Pump
53 Relief Pump
60 Tanker 2
61 Tanker 3
62 Tanker 4
63 Tanker 5
70 Rural Pump
71 First Rural Pump
72 Second Rural Pump
73 Rural Pump
74 Rural Pump
75 First Rural Tanker
76 Second Rural Tanker
77 Rural Tanker
78 Rural Tanker
79 Rural Tanker
80 Rural Command Unit

Note 1: Until 2010 the '18' suffix designated a Canteen Appliance. The only appliance to have held the '18' suffix in the years prior to this was 'Balmoral 6118' operated by the Auckland Fire Police Unit; this appliance changed callsign to 'Auckland Fire Police 8' in the early 2000s. In 2010 the suffix was redesignated for new combination Hazardous Materials / Command and Control units being rolled out across New Zealand.

Note 2: Previous generations of Scanning Enthusiast websites have indicated that the callsign suffix '35' once designated a Technical Liason Officer (TLO). This role is now known as a 'Hazardous Substances Advisor' (HSA) and the callsign suffix had not been used for several years prior to the commissioning of the first '35' appliance.

It should be noted that whilst the above table is generally true, there are exceptions to the rule in some areas.