During a goodwill visit to New Zealand this week, the Royal Australian Navy's largest warship, HMAS Canberra, unintentionally knocked out wireless internet and radio services across parts of the country.$XRP
As the 230-metre ship sailed through the Cook Strait early Wednesday morning, its powerful navigation radar began interfering with 5GHz wireless access points - the backbone for many local internet services. The interference triggered built-in safety systems in these devices, causing them to shut down to avoid clashing with radar signals used in New Zealand's airspace.
The impact was felt across both the North and South Islands, especially in the Taranaki and Marlborough regions. According to local ISP Primo, the outage moved across their network in sync with the ship's position. "This wasn't just a blip," said Primo's managing director, Matthew Harrison. "It was full-scale, military-grade radar... It's not every day a warship takes your gear offline!"
After being alerted, HMAS Canberra switched radar frequencies, resolving the issue. Australia's Department of Defence confirmed there are now no ongoing disruptions.
This rare incident highlights how delicate New Zealand's radio spectrum environment is especially in rural areas where wireless internet services share space with radar systems.