HMNZS Kahu (A04) is a Moa class inshore patrol vessel of the Royal New Zealand Navy. The Moa Class Patrol Boat was based on an Australian patrol boat design, Kahu was launched in 1978 as the lead boat of her class, modified to function as a diving tender. She was initially named HMNZS Manawanui, the second of three diving tenders with this name to serve in the New Zealand Navy. In 1988 She was renamed HMNZS Kahu (A04) and recommissioned as the basic seamanship and navigation training vessel attached to the Royal New Zealand Naval College. Kahu is the second boat with this name to serve in the New Zealand Navy. Kahu also is the Maori name for a New Zealand native harrier hawk. She was replaced in her role as a diving tender by HMNZS Manawanui (A09). Kahu can be distinguished from other boats of the Moa class by her lifting derrick, less accommodation structure, wet exhaust system and permanent dive platform on the stern. Her final role was for seamanship and Officer of the Watch training and also as a backup diving tender.

The Kahu was the first of seven ships of her class built and commissioned by the Royal New Zealand Navy through to the mid 1980's. The design was initially altered to increase the superstructure accommodation for two inshore survey vessels for the R.N.Z.N. These ships were HMNZS Tarapunga and HMNZS Takapu which were both decommissioned in 2000 and sold into private ownership for successful conversion to motor yachts.

The last four sister ships were named after World War II minesweepers and were ordered for the Royal New Zealand Naval Volunteer Reserve (RNZNVR), with the first in the class HMNZS Moa commissioning in 1983, HMNZS Kiwi in 1984 and then HMNZS Wakakura and Hinau in 1985. The IPC’s fulfilled a regional surveillance and fisheries protection role for much of their service lives and from 1994 four were modified to conduct mine countermeasures activities and route surveying using side scan sonar. On a number of occasions this was used to assist in search and rescue and transport investigations. In 2005 three vessels were relocated to Auckland to fill the training gap left by the decommissioning of the Leander class frigate HMNZS Canterbury (F-421). The fourth vessel, HMNZS Kiwi, continued to be based in Christchurch supporting the RNZNVR but was later relocated to Auckland to join the rest of the fleet in 2006. On relocating, the vessels had their side scan sonar removed. All four I.P.C.s were sold between 2007 and 2008 into both commercial and private ownership leaving just Kahu as the remaining example of this class.