Adventurous spirit of Titanic submarine explorer Hamish Harding inspires others

Missing UAE-based British billionaire said exploring showed him how people should work together

The pilot of a Royal Canadian Air Force maritime surveillance aircraft flies over the Atlantic during the search for the missing OceanGate submersible. Reuters

A Royal Canadian Air Force serviceman drops sonar buoys from a surveillance aircraft. Reuters

Capt Jamie Frederick of the US coastguard speaks to reporters about the search for the submersible, during a press conference in Boston, Massachusetts. AFP

Carl Hartsfield, director and senior programme manager Oceanographic Systems Laboratory, faces reporters as Royal Navy Lt Cdr Rich Kantharia, left, and Capt Frederick look on during the news conference. AP

Inside the submersible vessel Titan on a previous dive. The vessel is used to visit the wreckage site of the Titanic. PA

Titan went missing on a dive to the Titanic wreck site this week. PA

Businessman Shahzada Dawood, the vice-chairman of Karachi conglomerate Engro, and his son Suleman are on board the missing sub. AFP

Paul-Henri Nargeolet, French explorer and director of a company that owns the rights to the Titanic wreck, is on board the submarine. Reuters

The Titan submersible was taking five people to view the wreck of the Titanic when it went missing. AP

UAE-based British space explorer Hamish Harding posted this image of himself in Canada a day before the expedition. Photo: Instagram

Mr Harding, a businessman, receives his Blue Origin astronaut pin after a successful flight to space in June 2022. AP

The submersible usually carries a pilot, three paying guests and a 'content expert'. It has enough oxygen for up to 96 hours. AP

The Titanic sank on April 15, 1912, during its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York, killing more than 1,500 of the 2,200 passengers on board. Getty

The wreck, which was located in 1985, sits 3,800 metres at the bottom of the Atlantic, about 600km off Newfoundland. AFP

LATEST: Time running out as search for missing Titanic submarine goes on

From exploring the deepest point of the ocean to floating in microgravity at the edge of space, Hamish Harding has always been passionate about venturing into the unknown.

The billionaire, who turns 59 on Saturday, has called the UAE his home since 2008.

He went missing on Sunday on a submarine that was taking him and four other passengers to explore the wreck of the Titanic, in the North Atlantic.

Efforts continued yesterday to locate the missing submersible about 1,450km off Cape Cod in Massachusetts, where the sea can be almost 4km deep, before oxygen supplies run out.

Mr Harding spoke to The National several times before his adventures, inspiring others with his positive outlook.

Before seeking to explore the floor of the ocean, he had sought to travel to the fringes of space.

When he returned, he said seeing Earth from his vantage point showed him the importance of people working together for the planet.

Last June, before launching on a Blue Origin space tourism flight, Mr Harding had said he was not feeling nervous.

This was even though such suborbital flights were relatively new – with only 20 people having made the journey.

“I haven't really had a chance to feel nervous yet and I've always wanted to do this. I've wanted to go into space all my life,” he said.

After landing back on Earth, Mr Harding said he already had the submarine trip lined up and was excited about exploring the Titanic.

The deep-sea voyage was meant to happen end of December but kept getting delayed, until Sunday, when he and four other explorers boarded the Titan submersible.

Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman are among the other passengers on the Titan.

Reports said French Navy pilot Paul-Henry Nargeolet and the boss of tour company OceanGate, Stockton Rush, are also on board.

Mr Harding had told The National that his family had grown accustomed to him seeking out adventure.

"My family's got pretty used to it. Every year I'll go off and do something a bit unusual, and so I don't think they worry too much," he said.

In 2021, he dived into the Mariana Trench in the Pacific, at almost 11km the deepest point on Earth.

Earlier, in 2019, he flew around the world on a record-breaking flight with Nasa astronaut Terry Virts.

Giles, one of his two sons, said after his father's Blue Origin spaceflight that he felt "proud but nervous" as the rocket carried him 106 km above the Earth.

He had watched the launch with his mother and brother Rory.

“There was pin-drop silence when the rocket was about to lift off,” he said.

“Everyone was on edge and as he went as he went up there, it was kind of a surreal moment.

“You could see at the bottom of the rocket that there was massive amount of smoke.

“I was very excited, but also obviously very nervous.”

Mr Harding had told The National a day after his space trip that he was now seeing the planet from a different perspective and hoped that people would get along more.

He had experienced the overview effect – often described by astronauts as a powerful shift in how a person views the planet and life.

“The Earth was what I was waiting to see and it was as spectacular as I'd been told,” he said.

“Looking down on the Earth, we should all work a lot better together.

“There is so much wasted effort on this planet by not working together. The world can move forward so much faster and more productively if we all did.”