Nigel Stephen Coates | |
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Rear Admiral Nigel Coates in March 2008 | |
Born | 8 March 1959 |
Died | 2 June 2010[1][2] Canberra, Australian Capital Territory[1] | (aged 51)
Allegiance | Australia |
Service/ | Royal Australian Navy |
Years of service | 1975–2010 |
Rank | Rear Admiral |
Commands held | Commander Australian Fleet (2007–09) Director General Navy Personnel (2005–07) Director General Australian Navy Cadets (2005–07) HMAS Anzac (2001–02) HMAS Canberra (1996–98) |
Battles/wars | Gulf War War in Afghanistan |
Awards | Member of the Order of Australia |
Rear Admiral Nigel Stephen Coates, AM (8 March 1959 – 2 June 2010) was a senior officer in the Royal Australian Navy.
Coates joined the Royal Australian Naval College at Jervis Bay in 1975 as a Junior Entry officer, where he completed his high school education.
Coates spent 18 months in Newport, Rhode Island, where he attended the US Naval War College and earned a Master of Arts (International Relations) from Salve Regina University.
According to his official biography, "Coates and his wife Vickie enjoy sailing and have three children who also enjoy sailing – occasionally."[7]
In 1996, while sailing in the Australian Capital Territory, he suffered a traumatic amputation of the top of his ring finger.[citation needed]
Coates was diagnosed with an aggressive brain cancer in late 2009, shortly after relinquishing command of the Australian Fleet. He died on 2 June 2010,[8] aged 51, at the Medical Centre, Royal Military College, Duntroon, in Canberra. The funeral service with full naval honours was held in the Naval Dockyard Chapel, Garden Island, on 9 June 2010.[2]
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Member of the Order of Australia (AM) | Australia Day Honours List 2003[3] |
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Australian Active Service Medal[9] | with 1 clasp[9] |
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Afghanistan Medal[9] | |
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Australian Service Medal[9] | with 2 (?) clasps[9] |
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Defence Force Service Medal with 4 clasps[9] | 35–39 years service[9] |
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Australian Defence Medal[9] |