Sunshine Coast: Scuba Dive the Ex-HMAS Brisbane Ship Wreck

Dive one of the world's best wreck sites, the Ex-HMAS Brisbane, a decommissioned guided missile destroyer. Located just 2.9 nautical miles offshore, it is an easy venture out and is available to dive all year round.

Sunreef exclusively uses the two midship moorings, making for two leisurely dives that allow divers to comfortably and safely visit the entire wreck. Explore the outside of the wreck and encounter an abundance of local aquatic sea life that inhabits her.

Discover the depths of her hull, enter the engine room, or even visit the control room, where her kill switches are still intact. The vessel now serves as a world-class artificial reef and diving site, attracting divers from all over the world.

Divers from Open Water level to Divemaster, Instructors, dive shop owners, and ex-servicemen who served on the HMAS Brisbane all sing the praises of this great wreck dive. Sitting bolt upright, the Ex-HMAS Brisbane has 15 meters of water over her forward decks and 18 meters over her stern.

Consistently good water clarity and minimal swell make for excellent diving. Just one dive on the Ex-HMAS Brisbane, and you readily understand why Sunreef is privileged to have been licensed by the Environment Protection Agency of the Queensland Government to conduct dive trips on the former HMAS Brisbane.

The dive is phenomenal. There is certainly a lot of ship to see. Just cruising around the outside, its sheer size makes it an incredible sight. Water temperatures range from 17°C in winter to a summer high of 27°C. Visibility averages around 15 meters, but up to 20 meters or more is not uncommon.

Environmental studies commissioned by the Environmental Protection Agency and conducted by scientists from the University of the Sunshine Coast and Queensland Museum confirm the diversity of marine life that has made Brisbane home.

Local inhabitants include large bull and eagle rays, angler fish, lionfish, blennies, nudibranchs, sea hares, squid, and a school of juvenile red emperor and snapper. Other visitors include shoveled nose rays, greasy cod, and eagle rays.

An octopus has made a home in a pyrotechnic tube on the deck. A resident school of predatory yellow-tailed kingfish now buzzes the schools of bait fish surrounding the Ex-HMAS Brisbane. Up to 10 giant Queensland grouper have been seen off the ship's bow at one time.

A turtle has taken up residency on the aft funnel, and eagle rays cruise between the 2 funnels. There are also a huge number of soft corals to be seen, and hard corals are really getting established.