By DIVE Staff
The safety record of OceanGate’s Titan submersible, currently missing with five people on board near the wreck of the Titanic, has been called into question following the revelation of a ‘scathing document’ written by the company’s director of marine operations, David Lochridge, in 2018.
A 20 June 2023 article by the New York Times reports that Lochridge had written to OceanGate’s founder, Stockton Rush – who is one of the five people on board the missing sub – that the Titan needed more testing, and called into question ‘the potential dangers to passengers of the Titan as the submersible reached extreme depths.’
Lochridge’s report states that he found the viewport – which allows passengers to see outside the craft – was only certified to a depth of 1,300m (4265ft), far less than the 4,000m (13,123ft) rating that would be required to reach the Titanic, which lies at a depth of 3,800m.
Related articles
- ‘Banging’ sounds heard in search for missing Titanic sub
- ‘Megalodon-tooth’ necklace found in Titanic debris
- Unseen video footage from the first Titanic dive
- Deep sea pioneer Phil Nuytten dies at the age of 81
Lochridge was immediately fired, and subsequently brought a court case against OceanGate for wrongful termination.
In his legal filing, which references his discovery of the shortfall in the submersible viewport’s depth rating, he writes that ‘the paying passengers would not be aware, and would not be informed, of this experimental design, the lack of non-destructive testing of the hull, or that hazardous, flammable materials were being used within the submersible.’
The legal document also states that OceanGate had asked him to ‘test the exits to assess whether alternate escape plans were needed in the event the main hatch was unable to open.’ Concerns have been raised that, even if the missing submersible managed to surface, its occupants would be unable to escape as the entry hatch is bolted from the sub’s exterior.
Further warnings about Titan’s safety were raised later in 2018 by members of the Manned Underwater Vehicle Committee of the Marine Technology Society, which wrote that they were in ‘unanimous concern’ about Titan’s development and the planned missions to the wreck of the Titanic.
Other concerns raised over the submersible’s safety include reports that it is manoeuvred ‘using a Playstation controller’ (it is a modified Logitech controller, similar in design to that of a PS4).
A CBS news reporter who journeyed to the Titanic on board the Titan also wrote that he ‘couldn’t help noticing how many pieces of this sub seemed improvised, with off-the-shelf components.’
Onboard the missing submersible together with OceanGate’s CEO is British billionaire explorer Hamish Harding, French ocean explorer Paul-Henry Nargeolet, British-based Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son, Suleman.
Keep up-to-date with developments on DIVE’s main page.
