SAS Assegaai submarine now open for public viewing at Assegaai Submarine Museum in Simon's Town

Lester Kiewit speaks to Rear Admiral Arne Soderlund, retired South African Navy officer and author.

Never seen a submarine in reality on land? You can now...

The SAS Assegaai, formerly the SAS Johanna van der Merwe, is a decommissioned Daphné-class submarine which served the South African Navy from the 1970s into the 1990s.

The dream of preserving the 58 metre long, 700 ton submarine was born in late 2003 when Assegaai was decommissioned, and approved in 2005 with the Navy removing it from the Disposal List which saw two older submarines sold and cut up for scrap.

After fundraising efforts and an extensive restoration effort by a dedicated team, the submarine has finally been opened to the public for viewing and run by the Naval Heritage Trust.

'We're open to the public but purely on a trial basis,' says Soderlund.

Viewing officially opened on Monday, 16 December 2024 at the Assegaai Submarine Museum in Simon's Town.

You can visit the submarine museum seven days a week (except Christmas and Boxing Day) from 09:30 to 15:30.

Guided hour-long public tours are available for groups of 10 people (maximum).

The submarine museum pedestrian entrance is located next to the NSRI station and close to the False Bay Yacht Club while car parking is available from Main Road into King George Way.

Entry fees for tours are:

Adults: R80
Pensioners: R60
Kids under 12: R40

Since it's opening, the submarine has 'been very popular and our feedback has been tremendous,' says Soderlund.

To book a tour, contact the submarine museum manager at 021 787 4215 or email: info@assegaai-submarine.co.za.

"It's been a long job, we had to raise the funding... we finally moved her here in July and we actually have taken people to her. As from Monday, the 16th, we commenced taking our visitors on a trial basis to establish procedures and train up staff so we are operating now daily except for Christmas and Boxing Day."

- Rear Admiral Arne Soderlund, Retired South African Navy Officer

SAS Assegaai will remain the property of the South African Navy as part of the SA Naval Museum.

The Naval Heritage Trust has been delegated to move, install and manage the submarine on a hard stand at the western end of the Cole Point parking area, next to the new NSRI Station 10 building.

Scroll up to the audio player to listen to the interview.