(MENAFN- Swissinfo)
Philippe Epelbaum in his P-63 submarine, "Subspirit", in Lucerne on Tuesday Keystone / Philipp Schmidli
Non-claustrophobic passengers will soon be able to dive up to 100 metres into Lake Lucerne in a submarine.
This content was published on October 5, 2021 - 17:20 October 5, 2021 - 17:20 Keystone-SDA/ts
Two shipwrecks will be visited during the dives, which will start at the end of the year, explained Philippe Epelbaum, founder of the company SubspiritExternal link , at the Museum of Transport in Lucerne on Tuesday.“But there's also rubbish,” he added.
The P-63“Subspirit” is the only submarine in Switzerland with a licence for passenger travel. The grey, 5.5-metre-long, 2.5-metre-wide and 6.5-tonne capsule has room for three passengers and a pilot and will be put into the water on October 16.
The 6.5-tonne capsule has room for three passengers and a pilot Keystone / Philipp Schmidli
The exclusive ride will cost CHF490 ($530) per person. There are plans to extend the dives to other bodies of water.
Constant pressure
The P-63 was built on Lake Constance in 1987 and was mainly used for inspections and underwater work, for example on dam walls.
It has four battery-operated electric motors, one of which is responsible for the descent. The devices on board can also be controlled mechanically; brown wooden levers inside the submarine are responsible for inflating the ballast tank, for example.
The survival time on board is 96 hours, and there is a dry toilet for emergencies. The Nidwalden Navigation Office has approved the submarine for a diving depth of up to 300 metres. Behind the five-centimetre-thick steel hull there is constant pressure; unlike conventional diving, no decompression is necessary.
Epelbaum also wants to make the submarine available for technical trips, such as search and rescue missions.
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