Human error caused New Zealand navy ship to sink off Samoan coast, inquiry finds

Divers survey the area around HMNZS Manawanui on the southern coast of Upulo, Samoa, after the Manawanui ran aground (AC Jese Somerville/New Zealand Defence Force via AP)

A series of human errors caused a New Zealand navy ship to plough into a reef off the coast of Samoa, where it caught fire and sank, according to the preliminary findings of a military Court of Inquiry into the disaster released on Friday.

The ship’s crew did not realise autopilot was engaged, believed something else had gone wrong with the ship, and did not check the HMNZS Manawanui was under manual control as it maintained course towards land, a summary of the inquiry’s first report published on Friday said. The full report has not been made public.