Something Unique in Melaka - Submarine Museum

Have you stepped into a submarine before? Unfortunately, not us and I don’t think there are many opportunities to do so.

Since there is one submarine museum in Melaka, we decided to take our family there to look. There are only six other submarine museums worldwide, namely in Japan, Russia, India, Gosport, Australia and Germany.

Melaka Submarine Museum

The French Navy was the original owner of the submarine on display – the SMD Ouessant. Built in 1978 by Arsenal de Cherbourg, the submarine was decommissioned in 2001. In 2002, the government of Malaysia bought the submarine and used it as a training vessel from 2005 to 2009.

Inside the submarine

The first thing we saw once we entered the submarine was a room full of engines and equipment, and we could still smell a stale pungent smell typical of an engine room.

Since the submarine was constructed in 1978, we did not expect to see any modern computers used for navigating the surrounding waters.

The bedroom for the Commanding Officer is this small. Can you imagine how the rest of the crew bunked in their quarters?

I am not sure how modern-day’s submarines are. But this one feels claustrophobic. How did a platoon of marine soldiers squeeze into this tiny space for months? To survive in a submarine for an extended period, I believe the crew needs to be mentally very strong.

The dummies in the various rooms gave me the creeps.

There were two retired fighting jets displayed on the other side of the museum.

For just MYR5 per adult, the Melaka submarine museum was an eye-opener. If you have kids with you and a vehicle to drive within Melaka, there is no harm in going there to take a look.

And since the museum is located in the Klebang area, you can stop by the famous original coconut shake for a refreshing break before moving on to the next place.

The Melaka Submarine Museum is located in Perbadanan Muzium Melaka, Kompleks Warisan Melaka, Jalan Kota, 75000 Melaka, Malaysia. Click here for its website.