On 19 March 2007, during a five-month intelligence-gathering mission in Asian waters, fishing lines became entangled in "Fancomb"’s propellor. The submarine surfaced in international waters during the calm night, and five sailors were out on the casing attempting to free the propellor when the weather suddenly worsened and the sailors were washed overboard. A rescue party, involving three volunteer swimmers was successful in retrieving the five sailors during a ninety-minute effort, and the submarine continued on without detection. The incident remained classified until August 2009, when the RAN nominated the three rescue swimmers for bravery decorations, the first submariners to be nominated since a 1981 incident aboard .