HMS Safari was a third batch S-class submarine built for the Royal Navy during World War II. Commissioned in 1942, she was assigned to operate in the Mediterranean Sea. During the course of the war, Safari sank twenty-five ships, most of which were Italian.

Laid down on 5 June 1940 at Birkenhead, Safari was launched on 18 November 1941 and commissioned on 14 March 1942 at Holy Loch. Between May and August 1942, Safari patrolled in the west Mediterranean, based in Gibraltar. After two failed attempts to attack enemy ships during a first patrol in the Alboran Sea, Safari conducted a second patrol, sinking her first ship, the Italian merchant Adda. In her next patrol, she escorted the Allied convoy in Operation Pedestal, then sank two additional ships and damaged another. On 12 September, Safari was reassigned to the 10th Submarine Flotilla in Malta, with which she conducted two patrols in the Adriatic Sea, sinking one ship and damaging several more. Safari then operated off Sicily, evading an attack by German aircraft then sinking two ships. On 18 November, Safari fired a torpedo at ships anchored at Ras Ali, Libya; but the torpedo passed under, striking and wrecking the port's mole along a length of 25 metres (82 ft), killing five men.

Safari went on to sink five ships, then was assigned to the 8th Submarine Flotilla in Algiers. During a patrol off Naples, she was mistakenly bombed by British aircraft but was not damaged; Safari went on to sink four boats, then carried out special operations, landing men in Sicily, then later in Sardinia. After an attack by an Italian destroyer in which she was not damaged, Safari conducted two patrols during the Allied landings in North Africa, sinking four ships. Safari returned to England on 8 September 1943, and conducted training operations with the 7th Submarine Flotilla, punctuated by a short patrol off Norway to guard against a potential sortie to Germany of the German battleship Tirpitz.

After the end of World War II, Safari was placed in reserve, then sold for scrap on 7 January 1946. However, she sank off Portland the next day while being towed to the shipbreaking yard.

The S-class submarines were intended to patrol the restricted waters of the North Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. The third batch was slightly enlarged and improved over the preceding second batch of the S-class. The submarines had a length of 217 feet (66.1 m) overall, a beam of 23 feet 9 inches (7.2 m) and a draught of 14 feet 8 inches (4.5 m). They displaced 842 long tons (856 t) on the surface and 990 long tons (1,010 t) submerged. The S-class submarines had a crew of 48 officers and ratings. They had a diving depth of 300 feet (91.4 m).

For surface running, the boats were powered by two 950-brake-horsepower (708 kW) diesel engines, each driving one propeller shaft. When submerged each propeller was driven by a 650-horsepower (485 kW) electric motor. They could reach 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph) on the surface and 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) underwater. On the surface, the third-batch boats had a range of 6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) and 120 nmi (220 km; 140 mi) at 3 knots (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph) submerged.

Safari was armed with six 21-inch (533 mm) torpedo tubes in the bow. She carried six reload torpedoes for the bow tubes for a total of a dozen torpedoes. Twelve mines could be carried in lieu of the torpedoes. The boat was also equipped with a three-inch (76 mm) deck gun. The third-batch S-class boats were fitted with either a Type 129AR or 138 ASDIC system and a Type 291 or 291W early-warning radar.

Ordered on 23 January 1940, Safari was laid down in Birkenhead by Cammell Laird on 5 June 1940. She was launched on 18 November 1941. The boat departed the builder's yard on 10 March 1942 and was commissioned into the Royal Navy on 14 March at Holy Loch.