The SS Assegai Submarine museum
The SS Assegai Submarine museum has recently been relocated to the Naval Museum. It was parked at the dock in Simon’s Town for years. It is open to the public to visit. The move was ‘truly monumental’, and was carried out by the heavy lift contractor Vanguard. It involved a ‘complex overland move’ and a 90-degree turn, of the 58-metre submarine, with its estimated weight of ‘almost 700 tons’.
Guided tours are run by volunteers who are all ex-submariners who served in the boat. The sub has been refurbished and it was first opened to visitors on 1 March 2011. Tours are taken to the Forward Torpedo Room, Junior Ratings Mess, Officer’s Quarters, Operations Room, Control Room, Engine Room, and the Senior Ratings Mess. The tour lasts approximately 1 hour.
