Submarine seen from the Waverley in amazing photos

On June 18, one of our sister titles reported a submarine had been spotted in the channel just off Penarth Pier.

Amazing shots taken by Richie Paines showed the sub stealthily making its way through the waters of the Bristol Channel.

Now, new shots have emerged which show the Walrus-class submarine lurking round the famous Waverley – the last sea-going paddle steamer in the world.

The HNLMS Zeeleeuw spotted from the Waverley (Image: Vicky Lemon-Heigh)

The sub was spotted on a cruise from Penarth to Ilfracombe (Image: Vicky Lemon-Heigh)

Two worlds collided as the history of the Waverley, launched in 1946, came within hundreds of the HNLMS Zeeleeuw – one of the Dutch Royal Navy’s most advanced subs, coming in at a cool £200 million a unit.

The extraordinary photos were taken by Vicky Lemon-Heigh during a cruise on the Waverley from Penarth to Ilfracombe.

Passengers were excited when they saw the sub (Image: Vicky Lemon-Heigh)

The Walrus-class sub's support vessel, the A900 was also spotted (Image: Vicky Lemon-Heigh)

Ms Lemon-Heigh said excitement hit fever pitch on the ship when the sub was spotted.

“As we sailed past the end of the Porthcawl coastline the passengers began to notice action on the water,” said Ms Lemon-Heigh. 

“First I saw the A900 (submarine support vessel) from the top deck on the starboard side and then the captain on the Waverley gave an announcement to say the submarine was on the port side.

“It was a huge buzz of excitement for all the passengers.”

Richie Paines spotted the sub off Penarth pier (Image: Richie Paines)

Ms Lemon-Heigh said the spotting of the sub was an extra surprise in what was a special day for the family.

Ms Lemon-Heigh added: “It was a special day as my mum was going to finally say goodbye to her life partner by spreading his ashes from the back of the Waverley on our way back from Ilfracombe.”

In the distance, the A900 at Penarth Pier (can you spot it?) (Image: Newsquest)

The HNLMS Zeeleeuw is a Walrus-class submarine currently in operation in the Royal Netherlands Navy.

It’s usually armed with torpedoes and mines and can reach depths of 1000ft.