Explainer | Titan sub search: as time and air run short, possible outcomes for lost Titanic tour vessel and 5 passengers
- Missing submersible’s presumed air supply is expected to run out on Thursday
- Here are several possible outcomes for the Titan sub and its five passengers
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Underwater ‘banging’ noises heard in search for lost Titanic tour submersible
Time is quickly running out in the search for a missing submersible that lost contact with its mother ship on Sunday as it descended to the wreck of the Titanic with five people aboard.
As an international fleet of surveillance vessels and aircraft forges ahead with ongoing search and rescue efforts, each passing second makes it less likely that the passengers on the Titan will be found alive as their oxygen supply is expected to run out by Thursday morning EDT (Thursday evening Hong Kong time).
Even if the Titan is located in the North Atlantic, it could be nearly impossible to reach if it is stuck on the ocean floor at roughly 3,800 metres (12,500 feet) near the Titanic’s wreckage.
The five people on board are pilot Stockton Rush, the CEO of OceanGate, the company leading the expedition; British adventurer Hamish Harding; Shahzada and Suleman Dawood, a father and son from a prominent Pakistani family; and French undersea explorer and Titanic expert Paul-Henry Nargeolet.
Titan found on surface
The Titan has built-in safety systems that help it rise to the surface in case of emergency including sandbags and lead pipes that can be released, as well as an inflatable balloon. The system was designed to work even if everyone on board is unconscious.