Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum

Name

Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum

Legal name

Pacific Fleet Submarine Memorial Association

Website

https://bowfin.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1978

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Naval Heritage Museum

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (7121), Museums (712110)

akta.pro primary industry

Submarine & Glass-Bottom Boat Experiences (THAJAJAL)

akta.pro secondary industry

Sightseeing & Scenic Boat Tours (Harbor, Sunset, Dolphin/Whale Watching) (THAJAJAA)

Keywords

• Naval heritage museum
• WWII submarine tours
• Maritime education programs
• STEM field trips
• Pearl Harbor historic site

Headquarters

HQ city

Honolulu

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Admission Tickets: Revenue from general admission tickets for adults ($25.99), children ($14.99), and discounted military/Kama'āina rates ($18.99/$9.99). Also includes revenue from the Passport to Pearl Harbor two-day ticket.
2. Membership & Annual Passes: Regular Membership at $150 per year with $50 annual dues thereafter, and Lifetime Membership at $1,000 one-time payment. Members receive free admission and gift shop discounts.
3. Donations: The Pacific Fleet Submarine Memorial Association is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. Donations support preservation and education. Donors at $3,000+ receive submarine-shaped plaques displayed at museum entrance.
4. Captain's Tour: Premium private tour experience led by former U.S. Navy submarine commanding officer. Cost is $1,000 as a tax-deductible donation to the education program.
5. Gift Shop & Retail: Online gift shop operated by SSA Group selling USS Bowfin memorabilia, apparel, and merchandise. Physical gift shop on-site open 9am-5pm.
6. Baggage Storage: Baggage storage service for visitors at $6 for regular bags and $10 for large/oversize bags.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum operates a 2.5-acre heritage campus at Pearl Harbor anchored by the USS Bowfin (SS-287), a WWII Balao-class fleet attack submarine restored to its 1945 configuration. Visitors experience self-guided and guided tours of the submarine, three interactive galleries with over 4,000 artifacts, and the Waterfront Memorial honoring 52 lost submarines and 3,600+ submariners, supported by a mobile audio tour app in seven languages.

Product overview

The Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum operates as a physical museum and historical site at Pearl Harbor, offering a unified portfolio of visitor experiences centered on the USS Bowfin (SS-287), a National Historic Landmark WWII Balao-class submarine. The core offering combines submarine tours (self-guided via app, general guided, and premium Captain's Tour), three interactive museum galleries with over 4,000 artifacts spanning WWII to present day, and the outdoor Waterfront Memorial honoring lost submarines and submariners. The museum supplements these with educational programs including STEM engagement activities, Innovation Cart demonstrations, high school internships, scholarship programs administered through partner foundations, and an online memorial (On Eternal Patrol). The campus sits on 2.5 acres within the Pearl Harbor National Memorial and serves over 400,000 visitors annually.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• USS Bowfin (SS-287) Submarine Tour
• Museum Galleries
• Waterfront Memorial
• Captain's Tour
• STEM Education Program
• Annual and Lifetime Memberships
• USS Bowfin Gift Shop
• USS Bowfin Memorial Scholarships
• USS Parche (SS-384) Conning Tower Display
• High School Internship Program
• Baggage Storage Service
• Passport to Pearl Harbor Ticket

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $1.5 million in scholarships awarded since 1985
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core, flagship and minor.

• Pearl Harbor Historic SitescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPacific Fleet Submarine Museum is one of four Pearl Harbor Historic Sites, partnering with USS Arizona Memorial, Battleship Missouri Memorial, and Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum. Offers combined Passport to Pearl Harbor tickets for visits to all four sites.
• Dolphin Scholarship FoundationflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPFSMA partners with Dolphin Scholarship Foundation to administer the USS Bowfin Memorial Scholarship program. $50,000 in scholarship funding available annually for qualified submariners or their family members pursuing undergraduate education or vocational certification.
• University of Hawai'i FoundationflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with UHF to establish scholarship program for students enrolled in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs at Honolulu Community College. $50,000 committed for 2025/2026 academic year.
• SSA GroupcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorSSA Group operates retail and food service (Jake's Food Truck) at the museum. Also operates the online gift shop at shopbowfin.com. Partner for retail and food service opportunities.
• Honolulu Community CollegeflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for CTE scholarship program benefiting students in trade programs. PFSM has committed $100,000 over two years for students in electrical installation, sheet metal, welding, and safety management programs.
• Pearl Harbor Naval ShipyardminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership connecting students with career opportunities in Hawai'i's maritime and defense workforce through museum programming and CTE academy visits.
• On Eternal PatrolflagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerOnline memorial project honoring over 4,000 U.S. submariners who lost their lives in service. Led by museum historian Charles Hinman, the project provides research, photographs, biographies, and family connections for lost submarine crews.

Scale indicators8 records

Recent moves11 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• USS Constitution Museum: Boston museum dedicated to USS Constitution, the oldest commissioned warship afloat. Comparable as a historic naval vessel museum with similar visitor experience design, educational programming, and nonprofit governance model.
• Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum: Fourth Pearl Harbor Historic Site focused on aviation history. Direct peer because it shares the Passport to Pearl Harbor combined ticket, overlapping visitor demographics, and cross-promotion partnership.
• Intrepid Museum: New York City museum aboard the aircraft carrier USS Intrepid with submarine USS Growler on display. Highly comparable as a naval heritage museum featuring a submarine exhibit, premium experience offerings, and education programs.
• Battleship Missouri Memorial: Adjacent Pearl Harbor Historic Site featuring the USS Missouri battleship. Direct peer because it operates under the same four-site Pearl Harbor ecosystem, uses the same Passport to Pearl Harbor ticket bundle, and targets the same tourist and education segments at Pearl Harbor.
• Battleship Texas State Historic Site: Texas-based museum ship and naval heritage site aboard the USS Texas. Comparable as a historic naval vessel experience with similar museum ship model, school group programming, and ongoing preservation challenges for an aging vessel.
• USS Nautilus (Submarine Force Museum): Connecticut-based official submarine museum of the U.S. Navy aboard USS Nautilus, the first nuclear-powered submarine. Direct peer as a U.S. Navy-affiliated submarine museum with similar curatorial scope, military partnership model, and target audience.
• USS Arizona Memorial: Flagship Pearl Harbor Historic Site operated by the National Park Service. Direct peer because it shares visitors, ticketing, and the Pearl Harbor tourism ecosystem, and competes for the same Pearl Harbor tourist attention and education group visits.
• USS Midway Museum: San Diego-based museum ship and naval aviation museum aboard the aircraft carrier USS Midway. Highly comparable as a museum ship experience with similar admission pricing, self-guided audio tours, and education programming for school groups.

Broad incumbents

• National WWII Museum: New Orleans-based national WWII museum covering all branches of the war. Comparable as a much larger WWII heritage institution with similar educational programming, donor/development model, and visitor scale, though focused on the broader war rather than the submarine force.

Regional players

• USS Pampanito (San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park): Museum submarine at San Francisco's Maritime National Historical Park. Comparable as a WWII Balao-class fleet submarine museum experience (same submarine class as USS Bowfin), but operates on the U.S. West Coast rather than Hawaii.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@ussbowfinsubmarinemuseumpa2739
• Facebookfacebook.com/PacificFleetSubmarineMuseum
• Instagraminstagram.com/pacflt_sub_museum
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/uss-bowfin-submarine-museum

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Pacific Fleet Submarine Museum