INS Kursura Submarine Museum: South east Asia’s first of its kind !

It was my third visit to Vizag, now known as Visakhapatnam. I was staying at Sagar Nagar beach, around 10 km from the city centre. We took an auto along the beach road which dropped us at Vuda park on the northern end of Ramakrishna(RK) beach. After a stroll along the beach road we headed to the INS Kursura Museum, south east Asia’s first one of its kind. It was the submarine museum. During my last visit it was closed for renovation. The gates opened at 2.00 pm in the afternoon. The submarine INS Kursura was a part of India Navy and had served more than twenty five years protecting our waters. The detailed history was portrayed on the entrance. After it was decommissioned from the Navy it was stationed at R.K beach in Vizag.

We joined the queue to the narrow entry at one end of the submarine. It was claustrophobic as we entered the engine compartment of the warship. We were briefed about the space and the guide showed us the Torpedos aligned on the corners of the room. It was super complex and looked like an out worldly structure. We headed to the living area through a narrow passage where sailors replicas were kept to give the feel of the place. The engine room had the complex machines and sonar devices which guided the submarine. We were told that the entry and exit from the submarine was from the top when it surfaced on the water. It was an awesome experience. We headed out and checked out the other showpiece around the submarine.

On the other side of the road was another Indian Navy marvel, an aircraft Museum. Recently opened, the TU-142 aircraft museum was the new tourism hot spot of the city. The gigantic Navy warplane was supposed to be the largest of its kind in the world. The Russian made warplane was truly unique. We entered the enclosed space where we were given a mobile and headphone (optional). The inbuilt software was telling us the history of the war plane as we checked all of its components displayed there. The engine was a complex machine. At the end we entered the plane through a walk way. The flight was flown by a five to six pilot team.

The view from the cafe After that we headed to the Art cube café adjacent to the museum. We ordered a chicken Alfredo pasta, chicken nuggets and blackberry shake after a cup of tea. I think the picture says it all. It was yummy!! The view of the warplane from the café was an icing on the cake.

We strolled along the R.K beach and headed back to our hotel as it started raining in the evening. A memorable day finally ended.

Timings- 2.00 pm in the afternoon. Monday closed.

Fun facts about a submarine:

• Once put under the water it can never be taken out. It is only taken out when its defunct.
• It runs of batteries which are charged once it comes up to the surface- Snorting (similar to what a scuba diver does)
• There are no windows. The sonar waves are the eyes of the submarine