YazataJun 19, 2023 06:58 PM (This post was last modified: Jun 20, 2023 05:33 AM by Yazata.)
It's named the Titan, it's capable of diving to 4,000m/13,123ft depth, and it carries five people on expeditions to view the Titanic wreck. Reportedly it costs $250,000/trip, which last ~8 hours. (So it's only for the really-rich.)
Trips to the ocean floor of the Atlantic carry a boat operator, three paying passengers, and a "content expert" to explain what is seen.
Today it's being reported that its support ship (a Canadian ocean-going tug) seems to have lost communication with it during a dive. It isn't reported if it sent any distress messages before going silent. We aren't told how long ago things went wrong. It carries enough air to last the people on board 96 hours/4 days.
The BBC reports that "several government agencies" and deep sea companies are assisting. But getting personnel and resources to the scene will take precious time.
One would think that if it encountered difficulties, it would drop ballast and float to the surface. If it hasn't done that, suggests problems are serious.
They say that they currently have two USCG C-130 aircraft on scene doing visual and radar searches for the submersible, if it is on the surface. The Canadians have a third C-130 doing the same.
In addition, the Canadian Air Force has a CP-140 anti-submarine patrol aircraft on scene dropping sono-buoys to listen for the submarine if it is on the ocean bottom.
The Coast Guard says they are in communication with military and private parties that might have rescue capabilities at that extreme depth (up to 13,000 feet deep). They are also in touch with commercial shipping in the general area, asking them to assist in a surface search. They weren't very specific, but they might have military surface assets headed to the area.
My comments:
The problem is that the submersible only has enough air for four days (assuming it is intact and hasn't ruptured, in which case everyone aboard is already dead) and one day is already gone. They still have to find the thing and raise it to the surface. The best bet might be to use deep sea drones to attach cables to the submersible and lift it that way.
Do we start looking for a cause? Watched enough Mayday to know human error could be a big factor, whether under the water or during basic maintenance. Not sure how stringent the rules are for underwater craft as opposed to those above the surface. With humans there’s always a chance of another Andreas Lubitz in control of a submarine or perhaps a freaked out passenger going berserk. Complacency and faulty equipment other potential causes.
I can see major changes ahead for regulating such ventures. Not looking good for this crew and passengers. If we can lose a giant airliner then a tiny submersible doesn’t seem out of the question. This incident will probably become known as the Curse of the Titanic. Wealthy people dying in what amounts to a graveyard for other well heeled folk is kind of ironically macabre.
Can still hope for a miracle. Would even debris float to surface at some point? Would there be much left of flesh and bone in a catastrophic accident? Do these subs carry black box recording devices with signal beacons?
YazataJun 20, 2023 09:08 PM (This post was last modified: Jun 21, 2023 06:00 AM by Yazata.)
The US Coast Guard held another press-briefing. The missing submersible hasn't been found.
A unified command has been set up with both the US and the Canadians. The Canadian Coast Guard Cutter John Cabot is on scene. The USCG tender Sycamore is on route and will arrive soon.
More than 7,000 square miles of ocean surface has been searched by multiple aircraft from both countries and nothing there. So it looks like the missing mini-sub is on the ocean floor.
The individual doing the briefing was asked what the plan was if the thing is located on the ocean bottom. He said that's to be determined by the unified command. The US Navy Supervisor of Salvage is figuring out a plan now, based on the assets that are available in the timeframe required.
A specialized British ship, the Deep Energy, has shown up that is equipped to lay and repair petroleum pipes on the bottom and has a remote controlled deep submersible. Sounds good, except that its maximum operating depth is 10,000 feet, about 2,400 feet above the extimated depth of the little missing sub.
I'm starting to suspect that Titan sprung a leak or imploded from the water pressure, and everyone aboard is already dead. If contact with the surface was lost suddenly without any emergency calls, that suggests that whatever it was, happened quickly and all at once. And in the event of emergency, those aboard should have been able to release ballast and surface, assuming they were still alive.
One of the passengers on the missing mini-sub has been identified as wealthy British adventurer Hamish Harding. Among his previous adventures was a trip into space aboard Blue Origin's New Shephard suborbital rocket.
YazataJun 21, 2023 05:58 AM (This post was last modified: Jun 21, 2023 06:33 AM by Yazata.)
Latest (33 minutes ago) is that one of the Canadian CP-140's has detected sounds that may (or may not) be the missing sub. Search is being concentrated in the area of the sounds and the Canadian data is being shared with US Navy experts to try to determine what it was.
YazataJun 22, 2023 05:35 PM (This post was last modified: Jun 22, 2023 06:07 PM by Yazata.)
Well, we have reached the end of the time that Titan's emergency air was expected to last. Chances of the crew's survival are going down by the minute.
Searchers still don't know what the detected sounds are/were. They have been unable to locate their source.
Several ships are on station above the Titanic wreck with remotely operated deep submersibles (ROV's).
The Canadian ship Horizon Arctic has an ROV in the water that has reached the ocean floor and is conducting a sea floor search.
The French ship L'Atalante has an ROV in the water descending to the sea floor.
Edit: Latest news is that a "debris field" has been discovered near the Titanic by the ROV from the Horizon Arctic. It's currently being evaluated by the Unified Command.
They plan to hold a press conference at 3 PM EDT to discuss the Horizon Arctic's ROV findings. My guess is that it might be the wreckage of the Titan, probably with no chance of survivors. Of course, the Titanic broke up into two large pieces as it sank and all kinds of Titanic debris might be scattered on the ocean bottom. So it's hard to say what the Horizon Arctic's ROV discovered without more information.
I hate to imagine what they must be going thru. In a way it would be better if the sub collapsed in on itself. It would've spared them the long moments of awaiting their eventual suffocation.
YazataJun 22, 2023 08:48 PM (This post was last modified: Jun 22, 2023 10:35 PM by Yazata.)
The US Coast Guard news conference says that the debris found by the Horizon Arctic's remote operated submersible has been identified as the rear tail cone portion of the missing mini-sub. The front and rear hemispherical ends of the pressure hull have been found as well. The remains were found ~500 meters from the bow of the Titanic. The USCG admiral making the statement says that what has been observed is consistent with a catastrophic implosive collapse of the sub's pressure hull. Everyone aboard is dead and families have been notified. At the moment they are still mapping the debris field.
The Wall Street Journal is reporting that "US Navy officials" are telling them that the Navy's network of undersea hydrophones, placed on the sea floor to detect submarines, heard a sound consistent with an explosion or implosion just hours after the Titan tourist sub submerged.
This information was shared with the incident command, but that command was told not to make it public since the hydrophone network is secret.
Jun 19, 2023 06:58 PM
(This post was last modified: Jun 20, 2023 05:33 AM by Yazata.)
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