New Zealand Defence Force 29th November 2024: HMNZS Manawanui grounded and sank off the coast of Samoa as a result of human error, the interim Court of Inquiry report shows.

HMNZS Manawanui sinking in Samoan waters

The Royal New Zealand Navy ship grounded on a reef on the southern side of Samoa, on Saturday 5 October 2024 while conducting survey operations. Chief of Navy Rear Admiral Garin Golding stood up a Court of Inquiry following the incident in order to understand the facts of what occurred. “The direct cause of the grounding has been determined as a series of human errors which meant the ship’s autopilot was not disengaged when it should have been,” Rear Admiral Golding said. “The crew did not realise Manawanui remained in autopilot and, as a consequence, mistakenly believed its failure to respond to direction changes was the result of a thruster control failure. “Having mistakenly assessed a thruster control failure, standard procedures should have prompted ship’s crew to check that the ship was under manual control rather than in autopilot. This check did not occur. Remaining in autopilot resulted in the ship maintaining a course toward land, until grounding and eventually stranding.”

Rear Admiral Golding said why it happened and what would come next in terms of lessons learned were still being worked on as part of the wider Court of Inquiry, which was expected to be completed in the first quarter of next year.