What Is Titan Submersible? What Happened To The Passengers Aboard?

The tourist Titan Submersible had lost contact with its surface support ship on Sunday morning. After a five-day search for the sub, the US Coast Guard on Thursday said that the crew was killed in a “catastrophic implosion”.

What Is The Titan Submersible?

The Titan was a submersible or an underwater vehicle that is different from a submarine. It was operated by the privately owned US company OceanGate which organizes underwater expeditions for tourism and research purposes. It could carry five people and was made of “titanium and filament wound carbon fiber”, as per the company website.

The Titan was capable of going down 4,000 meters, or 13,123 feet deep. The Titanic wreckage lies about 12,500 feet down.

How Is It Different From Submarines?

Submarine and submersible are often used interchangeably but aren’t the same.

A submarine has enough power to leave port and come back to port under its own power. It can be powered by diesel engines, or even nuclear reactors, and does not need a support ship to launch.

A submersible has very limited power reserves so it needs a mother ship that can launch it and recover it.

The Titan submersible was dropped to a certain point in the North Atlantic Ocean by the Polar Prince, a former Canadian Coast Guard icebreaker. But, the Titan lost contact with the support ship 1 hour and 45 minutes into its dive

Who Were The 5 Passengers?

“These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans.”. OceanGate, the company that developed the submersible, said in a statement. “Our hearts are with these five souls and every member of their families during this tragic time.”

Hamish Harding, 58

Harding was the chairman of Action Aviation, an aviation sales and consulting company. He broke the Guinness world record for the fastest flight around both the Earth’s poles in 2019. And records for the longest duration at a full ocean depth by a crewed vessel and the longest distance traveled along the deepest part of the ocean.

Shahzada Dawood, 48 and Suleman Dawood, 19

British businessman Shahzada Dawood was from one of Pakistan’s richest families. He was traveling on the sub with his son Suleman, a student.

Shahzada was vice-chairman of Pakistani conglomerate Engro Corporation, which is a large fertilizer firm. He worked with his family’s Dawood Foundation, as well as the SETI Institute, a California-based research organization which searches for extra-terrestrial life.

Paul-Henry Nargeolet, 77

Nicknamed Mr. Titanic, he reportedly spent more time at the wreck than any other explorer and was part of the first expedition to visit it in 1987, just two years after it was found. He was director of underwater research at a company that owns the rights to the Titanic wreck.

“He is the world specialist on the Titanic, its conception, the shipwreck, he has dived in four corners of the world,” his family spokesman told Reuters.

Stockton Rush, 61

Stockton Rush was the chief executive of OceanGate, the firm which runs the Titanic voyages. Mr. Rush founded the company in 2009, offering customers a chance to experience deep sea travel, and made global headlines in 2021 when it began offering trips to the site of the Titanic wreck.

Mr. Rush was married to Wendy Rush, who is the great-great-granddaughter of Isidor and Ida Straus, who died in the Titanic wreck after letting women and children escape before them.