Australian National Submarine Museum acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land on which we operate, live and gather as employees, and recognise their continuing connection to land, water and community. We pay respect to Elders past, present and emerging.

Nuclear Powered Submarines for Australia

The announcement on 16 September 2021 that Australia will acquire nuclear powered submarines is very significant.

Explore

Image provided by the Ministry of Defence UK – Creator: CPOA(Phot) Thomas McDonald

LCDR Siobhan Sturdy CSM

Lieutenant Commander Siobhan Sturdy CSM is the only female marine engineer who has completed a posting in a Collins Class submarine.

Discover More

Image provided by Gina Pickering

Leading Seaman Jocelyn Finn

For Leading Seaman Jocelyn Finn, service in the Collins Class submarine is all about listening to the environment and new technology.

Discover More

Image provided by Gina Pickering

Request for Feedback

Please note this website is a Pilot site created to assist the selection and presentation of content and ideas related to submarines in Australia, and to explore the most effective mechanisms for enabling Australians to engage imaginatively and creatively with the Australian submarine enterprise.

Please Contact Us

Submarines


The Royal Australian Navy was among the first to acquire submarines.

Discover more

Image provided by the Royal Australian Navy

People and Places


Australians have served in submarines for over 100 years.

Discover more

Image provided by the Royal Australian Navy

Art


Submarines have attracted artists as the subject of their work.

Discover more

Image provided by the Artist Bob McRae

Welcome to the new virtual Australian National Submarine Museum.

Through this site you will be connected to the fascinating story of submarines in Australia and their significance and importance to Australian’s continuing and evolving understanding of their past, present and future.

The story of submarines in Australia and the development of an Australian submarine capability reflects the national story: its colonial and young-nation dependence on Britain and the Royal Navy, its growth to maturity and independence through two World Wars and the Cold War, its emergence at the end of the 20th Century as a truly distinctive, innovative and highly effective and respected nation.  So it is with our submarine capability.

Now at the start of the 21st Century, our submarines, submariners, and we are beginning a new and exciting journey into a challenging, but fascinating future.  A time of dedicated female as well as male submariners.  A time of accelerated technological advance with AI and autonomous, operational, submarine prototypes already probing the shape of future underwater warfare. 

But our site is not just about the physical objects.  It is about people, actions, places and imagination—for whether through text, film, art, or play, submarines have a place in our imagination. Who does not have some image of a submarine, however diverse, derived from a film, a book, a photograph, a painting? From Jules Verne’s Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea to Tom Clancy’s The Hunt for Red October, to the film Das Boot, submarines are deep in our imagination and our history.

Please explore the objects, collections, stories and interviews which we hope will bring a new insight into our unique Australian world of submarines.  And help make our history.

Explore

The Royal Australian Navy was among the first to acquire submarines. Our founding leaders appreciated how well submarines could defend our island nation. Their wisdom and foresight would be proved 30 years later in World War II.

Australia acquired HMAS AE1 and AE2 only 12 years after the first submarine was launched in the United States of America. The hull form, propulsion system and operating methodology of those submarines remain the basis for tomorrow’s Attack Class submarines.

Focus area

Technology

Research and Technology to Locate HMAS AE1

AE1 located after 103 Years.

..we can see the top of the fin beautifully..”

Discover More

Serving Australia

A Centenary of Submarines

2014 marked the Centenary of Australia’s submarines.

Discover More

Find events

Donate today

Find information

Learn

In this pilot website, this section is intentionally left blank.

In this pilot website, this section is intentionally left blank.

One virtual museum

Explore the objects, collections, stories, and interviews which bring a new value and insight into our unique Australian submarines and those who travel in them.

Contact

In this pilot website, this section is intentionally left blank.