“It is with the greatest pleasure that we can advise you that Assegaai is finally home and safe in her new museum precinct and visible to the public, albeit in need of some make-up.”
These were the words of Rear Admiral (JG) Arne Soderland (Rtd), representing the Naval Heritage Trust as SA Navy museum submarine SAS Assegaai (S99) was placed in her final resting place in an Annexure of the Naval Museum in Simon’s Town on Saturday 20 July. The submarine had completed a challenging and very wet overland trip of 350 metres, including a 90-degree turn.
South Africa’s first submarines were the Daphné-class submarines, ordered from France in 1968.
SAS Assegaai, formerly known as SAS Johanna van der Merwe, is the last remaining of the three French-built submarines that were operated by the South African Navy from the 1970s into the 1990s.
The dream of preserving a submarine was born in late 2003 when Assegaai was decommissioned, and approved in 2005 with the Navy removing her from the Disposal List which saw her two older sisters sold and cut up for scrap.
Assegaai successfully served as a museum from 2010 to 2015, docked alongside the outer wall of Simon’s Town harbour. When the submarine was taken out of the water in 2015 and placed on the synchro lift inside the harbour, it became apparent that the outer hull had deteriorated. Although the interior remained well-maintained, a permanent solution was needed to keep the submarine out of the water while maintaining accessibility. The museum vessel has been closed since then.
Now, after a long fund-raising journey, the early dream has been realised 21 years later.
The move was originally planned for 6 July 2024, but it was soon realised that the lifting structure, sponsored by Damen Shipyards Cape Town, required strengthening. Armscor Dockyard workers laboured after hours to fabricate and fit strengthening beams and plates.
The move commenced on the morning of Friday 19 July. As Soderland explained, the three point turn required the moving of containers, lambda walls and even a lamp post which was in the way.
“The rain which came in squalls did not make it any easier either!” he said.
By late Friday afternoon, the submarine was finally heading in the right direction and shortly thereafter cleared the first of the final hurdles, “getting her protruding sonar dome over the foundations, in some cases by a millimetre or two – the thickness of the plastic covering!”
The final few metres were covered on Saturday morning and once she reached her final position, the rest of the morning was spent in lifting tar and breaking concrete to allow her to be lowered onto the foundations without the sonar dome being damaged. By lunchtime SAS Assegaai was lowered and in her final position.
Soderland acknowledged that moving the 58 metre long, 700 ton submarine could not have been achieved “without the wholehearted and enthusiastic commitment of the SA Navy and Armscor Dockyard (Simon’s Town), supported by our sponsors, including Damen Shipyards Cape Town, the Mayor’s Office and Vanguard Heavylift.”
The Assegaai team will now plan the preparation of the ‘shore-side’ facilities as well as the preparation of the submarine for access and safety.
It is hoped to open to the public before the end of the year.
“Once our facilities are completed and volunteers trained and ready to show our visitors why we felt it so important to preserve this unique vessel and its home-grown advanced technology,” said Soderland.
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.
