LATEST: 'Banging' heard during search for missing Titanic submarine
A Dubai-based explorer is among several people on board a submersible that has gone missing in the Atlantic Ocean.
Hamish Harding is on a deep-sea vessel that takes tourists and researchers to view the wreck of the Titanic, 4,000 metres beneath the surface.
The 58-year-old, who owns an aviation company in the Emirates, posted a message on social media hours before the mission began, saying he was proud to be a “mission specialist on the sub going down to the 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,” he wrote.
Brian Szasz, Mr Harding's stepson, confirmed Mr Harding was on the sub, believed to be about 600km off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada.
“Thoughts and prayers for my stepfather Hamish Harding … his submarine has gone missing exploring Titanic. Search and rescue mission is under way,” he wrote on Facebook.
Mr Harding, chairman of Action Aviation, said the vessel left St John's in Newfoundland on Friday. The team planned to start the dive at 4am local time on Sunday.
The National reached out to a colleague of Mr Harding's in the company's UK office, who said they had no further information at this time.
OceanGate Expeditions said its focus was on those aboard the vessel and their families.
“We are deeply thankful for the extensive assistance we have received from several government agencies and deep sea companies in our efforts to re-establish contact with the submersible,” the company said in a statement.
“We are working toward the safe return of the crew members.”
A major search and rescue operation, being led by the US Coastguard and involving military aircraft, is under way.
In a press conference on Monday, Rear Admiral John W Mauger of the US Coastguard said they were doing “everything” they can to find the submersible. He added it has one pilot and four mission operators aboard.
He said they were conducting a search 1450km east of Cape Cod in collaboration with the Canadian armed forces and commercial vessels in the area.
“It is a remote area and a challenge but we are deploying all available assets to make sure we can locate the craft and rescue the people on board,” he said.
He said the submersible vessel has 96 hours of emergency capability, giving a window for rescuers to find the occupants alive.
“We anticipate that there’s somewhere between 70 to the full 96 hours at this point,” he said.
In a post on Instagram on Saturday night, Mr Harding said he was accompanied by “legendary explorers” including PH Nargeolet, a former French Navy commander.
“A weather window has just opened up and we are going to attempt a dive tomorrow,” Mr Harding wrote.
“We started steaming from St John's, Newfoundland, Canada yesterday and are planning to start dive operations around 4am tomorrow morning.
“Until then we have a lot of preparations and briefings to do.
“The team on the sub has a couple of legendary explorers, some of which have done over 30 dives to the RMS Titanic since the 1980s including PH Nargeolet.”
The British entrepreneur is a renowned aviator, explorer and space tourist. Known for his adrenalin-fuelled stunts, he has lived in Dubai for three decades.
He flew on board New Shepard, as part of the Blue Origin NS-21 mission, in June last year – one of six to go to space on the flight.
In 2021, he dived into the Mariana Trench in the Pacific, the deepest point on Earth. In 2019, he flew around the world in a record-breaking flight with Nasa astronaut Terry Virts.
Mr Harding's company is an international aircraft brokerage. It manages various business jets out of Dubai, including its own Boeing business jet.
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