South Africa's SAS Manthatisi submarine returns to active service after fatal 2023 incident

The South African Navy declared Heroine-class submarine SAS Manthatisi deployable again on September 1, 2026, after Operational Sea Training certification and participation in Exercise Red Lion. Its return follows engineering checks, equipment inspections and revised safety procedures introduced after a September 2023 training accident killed three sailors. Manthatisi is currently South Africa's sole active Type 209/1400MOD submarine; sister boats SAS Charlotte Maxeke and SAS Queen Modjadji I remain in a R136 million first-phase refit programme. The certification restores short-term availability but does not complete Manthatisi's still-outstanding mid-life modernisation.