New Zealand’s First Female Navy Commander Faces Court Martial After Ship Collision Due to Autopilot Oversight

Commander Yvonne Gray, who previously served as a Royal Navy warfare officer, was at the helm of the HMNZS Manawanui during the unfortunate event on October 5, 2024. The ship collided with a reef off the coast of Samoa.

The HMNZS Manawanui, known for its role as the Royal New Zealand Navy’s specialized dive and hydrographic vessel, was engaged in a reef survey near the Samoan island of Upolu at the time of the accident.

After running aground, the vessel caught fire and ultimately capsized, leading to the forthcoming legal proceedings against Commander Gray.

It ran aground and caught fire before capsising.

Lieutenant Commander Matthew Gajzago and a third person will also face a court martial.

Cdr Gray, who served in the Royal Navy for almost 20 years, faces charges including that she was absent from the ship’s bridge while within a nautical mile (1.8km) of a reef.

She also faces a charge of failing to manage the risks of conducting hydrographic work in uncharted waters close to reefs.

Cdr Gray faces a maximum of two years’ imprisonment if convicted.

Commander Yvonne Gray was commanding the HMNZS Manawanui when it ran aground off Samoa in 2024

Black smoke was seen rising from the ship after it ran aground and caught fire – it later capsised 

The HMNZS Manawanui, pictured in front of the HMNZS Otago during a training exercise, cost NZ$103million (£45.6million)  

The ship is still on the seabed near the Samoan reef it struck

Her barrister Todd Simmonds said she had ‘endured a lot of unjustified criticism’ over the ship’s sinking and his client denied the charges.

Cdr Gray is originally from Harrogate, north Yorkshire, and moved to New Zealand with her wife in 2012 before joining the country’s Navy.

She took command of the Manawanui, her first such role, in December 2022.

A military court of inquiry found human error caused the ship to sink, with senior crew failing to notice autopilot was on as they struggled to control a thruster and stop it running aground.

Some 75 crew left the ship in lifeboats and were rescued despite tough currents and winds pushing them towards the reefs.

No one was ‘heavily injured’ and no lives were lost according to the Samoa Fire and Emergency Services Authority.

Two crew members were later hospitalised, with one suffering a dislocated shoulder and the other a back injury.

Another 12 crew suffered minor cuts and soreness.

All 75 crew members on board were rescued with no deaths or serious injuries. Pictured: the crew in Samoa after fleeing the ship

New Zealand sent planes to repatriate the rescued crew (pictured) 

Pictured: the crew arriving home in New Zealand at RNZAF Base Auckland on October 7 2024

The 85-metre ship had cost the Kiwi government NZ$103million (£45.6million) to buy, modify and introduce.

Built in 2003, it was known as the MV Edda Fonn and was bought by New Zealand from Norwegian company Østensjø Rederi and delivered in May 2019.

It was New Zealand’s first ship to be lost to the sea since the Second World War and the first to be lost in peacetime.

The ship’s wreckage is still on sea floor near Upolu, Samoa.