16/10/2025
Was this Western Australia’s First Submarine? – Or just an Older Sister “to the Yellow Submarine in Geraldton”
This vessel is believed to be the first experimental submarine constructed in the mid-1960s in Dongara, Western Australia, as part of a local effort to revolutionise crayfishing on the continental shelf. Built from heavy-gauge steel and weighing nearly seven tonnes, it was designed to operate in shallow coastal waters, allowing crew to observe and harvest “painted” crayfish directly from the seabed.
The project was well ahead of its time. During early trials, the submarine’s electric propulsion system emitted toxic fumes, forcing the team to abandon the experiment. Two near-identical vessels are said to have been built—the older small sister, shown here, and a later Larger version that became Geraldton’s well-known “Yellow Submarine,” displayed on the Geraldton foreshore.
This earlier submarine disappeared from records for many years until it reportedly washed ashore in the King Sound, north of Beagle Bay. It was discovered by two Derby locals, who built a custom jinker trailer and hauled it more than 250 kilometres to Derby. During this trip local police where dispatched after calls reporting that a Submarine was being towed along the Great Northern Highway towards Derby around 3am.
Once arriving in Derby it became a popular roadside attraction outside the Munch out Café. After the café closed, the submarine was moved to a local scrapyard, where it slowly became overgrown and forgotten.
In March 2023, Steve Easton Director of GNC Quality Precast set out to locate the vessel he had admired during his years in the Kimberley. While on a business trip through the region, he tracked it down over grown in a contractors yard, negotiated its purchase price, and personally hauled it back to Geraldton on his Company’s truck.
Now partially restored and repainted in its iconic yellow livery, the submarine stands proudly at GNC Quality Precast’s New yard located at 34317 Brand Highway, Greenough, 25km South of Geraldton & 35 Km North of Dongara as a lasting tribute to Western Australia’s innovation, determination, and the daring spirit of its coastal pioneers.
This is still an evolving story and we are still digging in to her history, and there are many pages left unturned, so if you do have any information on the submarine please email any photos or information to [email protected] or send a message to the GNC Quality Precast Face Book page.