Faulty technology led to the implosion of an experimental submersible, killing five people on the way to the wreck Titanicthe National Transportation Safety Board concluded in a report Wednesday.
The NTSB issued a statement on the hull failure and implosion in its final report titanium submersible in June 2023.
Everyone aboard the submersible died instantly in the North Atlantic when the Titan suffered a catastrophic implosion as it plunged to the wreckage.
The NTSB report states that the Titan’s flawed design “resulted in the construction of a carbon fiber composite pressure vessel that had numerous anomalies and did not meet required strength and durability requirements.” It also said that OceanGate, the Titan’s owner, failed to adequately test the Titan and was unaware of its true durability.
The report also said that if OceanGate had followed standard emergency response guidelines, the Titan would likely have been found sooner, and that would have “saved time and resources, even if rescue was not possible in this case.”
The NTSB report agrees with a Coast Guard report released in August that described the Titan implosion as preventable. The Coast Guard found that security procedures at OceanGate, a private company based in Washington state, had “critical deficiencies” and noted “glaring disparities” between security protocols and actual practices.
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OceanGate ceased and ceased operations in July 2023. Company officials did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday. A company spokesman expressed condolences to the families of those who died after the Coast Guard report was released in August.
The Titan implosion killed OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush and led to lawsuits and calls for stricter regulation of private deep-sea expeditions. The implosion also killed French underwater explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, known as “Mr. Titanic”; British adventurer Hamish Harding; and two members of a prominent Pakistani family, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood.
The NTSB report recommends that the Coast Guard appoint a panel of experts to study submersibles and other pressurized vessels intended for human occupancy. It is also recommended that the Coast Guard implement regulations for the vessels considered in this study.
It also called on the Coast Guard to “share the results of the study with the industry,” which has grown in recent years as privately funded exploration has increased.
The ship had been traveling to the Titanic site since 2021. His last dive took place on the morning of June 18, 2023. About two hours later, the submersible lost contact with its supply ship and was reported overdue that afternoon. Ships, aircraft and equipment were brought to the scene about 435 miles (700 kilometers) south of St. John’s, Newfoundland.
A multi-day search for survivors off Canada made international headlines. It soon became clear that there would be no survivors, and the Coast Guard and other authorities began a lengthy investigation into the incidents.
&Copy 2025 The Canadian Press
