A New Zealand Navy ship sank because the autopilot was on

The 85-meter-long and 18-meter-wide specialized vessel HMNZS Manawanui crashed after hitting a reef near the Samoan island of Upolu. A specialized hydrographic and diving vessel was examining the reef at the time of the accident. All 75 crew members survived. They left the burning vessel in lifeboats and ships that came to help.

According to the Chief of the Navy, Rear Admiral Garin Golding, no one thought to check that the ship was under manual control as it maintained its course towards land. This is reported by the Reuters agency with reference to the first reports from the investigation. The entire report is not yet publicly available.

Golding reported that the cause of the vessel’s sinking was a series of human errors. He specified that the crew did not realize that the ship remained in autopilot, and subsequently thought that its failure to respond to changes in direction was the result of a failure to control the thrusters.

“HMNZS Manawanui’s autopilot was not turned off when it should have been,” Golding said in a statement on Friday. The trial court is expected to continue until the first quarter of next year. Separate disciplinary proceedings against those involved will begin as soon as the investigation is completed.

“I want to reassure the New Zealand public that we will learn from this situation and that it is up to me as the Commander of the Navy to regain your trust,” Golding said.

The ship was one of only nine ships of the New Zealand Navy and also the first that the country lost at sea since the Second World War, reports Reuters.