To divert German troops from the Anzio landings (Operation Shingle), the Fifth Army was ordered to advance towards Cassino and Frosinone before 22 January, D-Day for the operation. To provide a reserve for the army group, the 2nd New Zealand Division was withdrawn to the Naples area. The division became part of the ad hoc New Zealand Corps after its reinforcement by the 4th Indian Division and the regiment was posted above the Volturno River around the village of Raviscanina. Arriving on 22 January, it moved forward to an assembly area at Stazione di Toro on 6 February. The Fifth Army advance had stalled and the 2nd New Zealand Division moved into the line. Three days later the regiment replaced the 21st Battalion on the Gari river, opposite Sant'Angelo. On 15 February, the Benedictine monastery on Monte Cassino was bombed and two days later the Maori Battalion attacked the Cassino railway station. There was only enough space for a two-company advance, so Divisional Cavalry and 24th Battalion machine-gunned and mortared the area to their front to create the impression of a larger attack. The regiment laid down a mortar barrage on its front to screen the Maoris with smoke. The Maori Battalion advanced to the railway station but was forced back over the Rapido in the late afternoon. Div Cav moved out of the line to Monte Trocchio on 23 February and was relieved by the 1st Battalion, East Surrey Regiment from the British 78th Division. On 15 March, the Monte Cassino assault resumed, and C Squadron kept the Route 6 bridge over the Gari-Rapido shrouded from German observation with smoke. The regiment pulled out of the line on 20 March, taking up the new left flank of New Zealand Division along the Gari River and was relieved on 9 April by the 22nd Battalion.