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,Naval signal from Vice Admiral Russ Crane, 2 June 2010 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.Nigel Coates , onlinetribute.com.au, Sydney Morning Herald, 5 June 2010, retrieved 5 June 2010.
