Ocean Gate, which was operating the submarine Titan that was crushed during the Titanic tour, has suspended operations

On June 19, 2023, the submarine Titan, which dived into the sea to see the Titanic sinking in the Atlantic Ocean, went missing, and as a result of the search, wreckage was found near the Titanic on June 22. It has now been discovered that Oceangate, the deep-sea exploration tour company that operated Titan, has suspended all expedition and commercial activity.

You're invited to dive with us - OceanGate Expeditions
https://oceangateexpeditions.com/

OceanGate suspends operations after Titan submersible implosion | Titanic sub incident |
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jul/06/oceangate-suspends-operations-titan-submersible

OceanGate suspends its exploration operations after Titan implosion : NPR
https://www.npr.org/2023/07/06/1186309953/oceangate-titan-submersible-implosion-suspends-operations

The Titan was a five-seater submersible operated by Ocean Gate, with a body made of carbon fiber reinforced plastic and titanium, and an acrylic resin window for viewing. It was used on the Titanic tour from 2021, but it is also reported that Titan's safety was questioned from the early stages of development.

The safety of the sightseeing submersible that disappeared near the Titanic was questioned from the early stages of development - GIGAZINE

In addition, reporter David Pogue, who visited Titan on the ``CBS News Sunday Morning'' broadcast in November 2022, said, ``Many submersibles use construction pipes as they are for bare displays and ballasts. The part of it looks like it was improvised.'

A visit to RMS Titanic-YouTube


At the time of its disappearance, it was not known whether the Titan had been crushed or simply had limited navigation and communication capabilities, and it was possible that the crew had survived until the Titan's internal oxygen ran out. Therefore, a large-scale search team including the United States Coast Guard was formed, but on June 22, a remote-controlled unmanned submersible that was searching the vicinity of the scene was about 400 meters away from the bow of the Titanic. Remains of Titan have been found on the ocean floor.

Those killed in the accident were Ocean Gate CEO Stockton Rush, British businessman Hamish Harding, French explorer Paul-Henri Narjolet, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood, and others. They are five with their son Sleman Dawood.

The wreckage of the Titanic sightseeing submarine is discovered, all crew members died and the Coast Guard - GIGAZINE

On June 28th, the wreckage of Titan was salvaged, and what is believed to be a corpse was also found inside.

Experts analyze the wreckage of the Titanic submarine ``Titan'' and ``parts of the corpse'' ... The problem is pointed out in the form of ``design emphasis'' [news23] | TBS NEWS DIG
https://newsdig.tbs.co.jp/articles/-/571751

British daily The Guardian reports that Jason Neubauer, chairman of the Marine Corps Commission of Inquiry, said, 'This evidence has led investigators in several international jurisdictions to question the cause of the tragedy. It provides important insight: Much needs to be done to understand the factors that led to Titan's devastating loss and to prevent a similar tragedy from happening again.'

And on July 6th, local time, Oceangate, which lost CEO Rush in the accident, displayed a short statement at the top of its official website : 'Oceangate has suspended all exploratory and commercial activities.' It was reported that there were Ocean Gate did not respond to inquiries from The Guardian and American broadcasting stations and NPR.

Alain Grenier , a professor of high-risk travel at Canada's University of Quebec, told NPR, 'An accident of this magnitude definitely gets attention. But the question of whether a tourism business like this will be shut down is questionable. I think there will be more interest in the short term, ”he said, noting that even with the Titan accident, this kind of exploration business will not disappear.

For example, activities such as climbing Mount Everest and flying small planes are dangerous and sometimes fatal, yet people continue to engage in these activities. 'People will come back when they feel confident again that these activities are safe,' Grenier said. I think I should be more careful,' he insisted.