NSW Central Coast · Australia · Wreck · Artificial reef
Ex-HMAS Adelaide
Scuttled RAN frigate in 32 m off Avoca, closed to divers since July 2024
Area photo: Ray Hayward · CC BY-SA 3.0
A former Royal Australian Navy guided missile frigate scuttled as an artificial reef in 2011, lying 1.7 km off Avoca Beach in about 32 m. It was the area's headline wreck dive, a boat dive out of Terrigal Haven with resident kingfish and wobbegongs, until a 2024 storm tore off the superstructure and the site was closed to divers in July 2024 with no reopening date.
Also known as Adelaide (Wreck), HMAS Adelaide.
Where it is and how deep
33.4632° S, 151.4474° EPublished position for this site.
The dive
Until its closure this was a boat dive out of Terrigal Haven to the frigate 1.7 km off Avoca Beach, where the hull sits in 32 m of water by Wikipedia's figure and 35 m by Central Coast Divers' account. The ship was scuttled as an artificial reef in April 2011, and at that depth every dive on it was a deep dive: a descent to a 30 m-plus bottom, limited time on the hull, and a long, slow ascent back to the surface.
The wreck built up a following of its own. Schools of kingfish made the Adelaide their permanent home, wobbegong sharks and other bottom-dwelling species settled on the hull, and several nurse sharks were being spotted regularly. Then, with the superstructure already weakened, a storm and heavy seas in 2024 removed the superstructure entirely and dropped it on the seabed on the port side of the ship, and most of the reef life was swept off the wreck at the same time.
The department responsible for the wreck closed the site in July 2024 and it remains closed until further notice. Nobody has published a survey of what the wreck looks like or what has returned since the storm, so any plan for this dive is a plan to wait: check with Central Coast Divers for the current status before travelling for it.
The wreck
- Vessel
- HMAS Adelaide (FFG 01)
- Type
- Guided missile frigate
- Sunk
- 2011
- Cause
- Scuttled as an artificial reef on 13 April 2011
- Lies
- 1.7 km off Avoca Beach in 32 m of water; the superstructure now lies on the seabed on the port side
HMAS Adelaide (FFG 01) was the lead ship of the Adelaide class of guided missile frigates built for the Royal Australian Navy. She was scuttled as an artificial reef off Avoca Beach on 13 April 2011, after a pod of dolphins inside the 1 km exclusion zone delayed the sinking by over an hour. The wreck became the area's headline dive until a storm in 2024 tore the already weakened superstructure off the hull and dropped it on the seabed beside the ship, sweeping most of the reef life away with it. The department responsible for the wreck closed the site to divers in July 2024, and it remains closed until further notice.
Marine life and season
- Trevally & jacks
- Wobbegongs
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Good | Good | Good | Good | Prime | Prime | Prime | Prime | Fair | Fair | Good | Good |
Season follows NSW Central Coast: Logged visibility peaks May–Aug at 15 m or more, when the water is coldest at 16–17°C; spring is murkiest, with 5 m or less logged in October.
Know before you go
- The site has been closed to divers since July 2024 after storm damage; check the current status with Central Coast Divers before planning a trip around it.
- The 2024 storm removed the superstructure and deposited it on the seabed on the port side, so older dive plans and wreck diagrams no longer match the ship.
Questions divers ask
Can you dive the ex-HMAS Adelaide?+
Not at present. The department responsible for the wreck closed the site in July 2024 after a storm removed the superstructure, and it remains closed until further notice. Check with Central Coast Divers for the current status.
How deep is the ex-HMAS Adelaide wreck?+
The frigate lies 1.7 km off Avoca Beach in 32 m of water by Wikipedia's figure; Central Coast Divers puts the depth at 35 m.
Sources
- Adelaide (Wreck) — Scubago
- HMAS Adelaide (FFG 01) — Wikipedia
- ex-HMAS Adelaide History — Central Coast Divers
- ex-HMAS Adelaide boat charter — Central Coast Divers
More dive sites in NSW Central Coast
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Chains, cables and the 1914 Wallarah wreck under a coal jetty in 11 m
Wall
Wall and bommies with fiddler rays and eagle rays, dived above or below 20 m
Reef
Overhangs and boulders in a 10 m-wide inlet named for a car driven off the cliff
Beginner wall dive to 14 m with sleeping blue gropers on night dives
Wreck
1927 coaster in 51 m with kingfish on the line and baitfish over the hull
Bridge pylons and an 18 m artificial reef, dived at slack or as a tidal drift
Similar dives elsewhere
A 133 m destroyer on sand at 28 m, dived outside only
A 138 m guided missile frigate sunk at 30 m
A 133 m destroyer on a fixed mooring, 5 m down to 36 m
The Greenpeace ship bombed in 1985, now a dive wreck at 26 m