Who is on the missing Titanic-bound submarine? Identities explored as plane search underway

A search is underway for a submersible vessel that took five tourists to see the wreckage of the Titanic under the North Atlantic Ocean. The search-and-rescue operation by US and Canadian rescue teams began in the North Atlantic on Monday, June 19.

One pilot and four passengers are said to have been on the watercraft. The CEO of OceanGate, the company that built the vessel, a French submersible pilot, and a UK billionaire are believed to be among the five people on board. The tourist submarine reportedly has 70-96 hours of oxygen left.

The US Coast Guard in Boston is leading the search for the missing submarine. The Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Nova Scotia’s Halifax said that the disappearance of the watercraft was reported overdue Sunday night, June 18, about 435 miles south of Newfoundland’s St. John’s.

The US Coast Guard said that the 21-foot tourist submarine named “Titan,” which set out on its journey from St. John’s, began its dive on Sunday morning. But the Canadian ship, The Polar Prince, that supported the submersible lost contact with it in about an hour and 45 minutes.

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Identities of passengers on the missing Titanic-bound tourist submarine

Washington-based deep-sea exploration company, OceanGate Expeditions, has confirmed that five crew members are onboard Titan, which has gone missing.

“Our entire focus is on crewmembers in the submersible and their families,” a statement from the company read.

British billionaire Hamish Harding, a UAE-based aircraft pilot, is reported to be one of the passengers on the missing Titanic-bound watercraft. 58-year-old Hamish is the chairman of Action Aviation. He has also been the director of the 2019 record-breaking mission to orbit the Earth via the North and South Poles.

The stepson of Hamish Harding took to Facebook to confirm that his stepfather had gone missing. On June 17, the billionaire shared on Instagram that he was proud to be a part of the mission to visit the wreckage of Titanic.

"Due to the worst winter in Newfoundland in 40 years, this mission is likely to be the first and only manned mission to the Titanic in 2023. A weather window has just opened up and we are going to attempt a dive tomorrow," he wrote.

Further information about the other four passengers is not yet known.

OceanGate’s expeditions to the wreckage site of Titanic include marine biologists and archaeologists. The company also takes people who pay to come along as “mission specialists.” The submersible Titan has a capacity of five seats. The passengers on board take turns operating sonar equipment and performing other tasks.

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Rear Admiral says the rescue mission is taking place in a remote area

Commander of the First Coast Guard District, Read Admiral John Mauger, said that two aircraft, each from Canada and the US, along with a commercial ship, had been involved in the search. He continued that further assets would be added as the search continued throughout Monday night (June 19).

John Mauger added that the location of the operation, about 900 miles east of Cape Cod, which is up to 13,000 feet deep, is complicating the task, as is the need to look both above the surface of the water and below.

“It is a challenge to conduct a search in that remote area, but we are deploying all available assets to make sure that we can locate the craft and rescue the people on board,” he said at a news conference.

Mauger assured that the rescue teams are taking this mission personally and doing everything they can to bring those on board the submersible safely back home.