Oceangate CEO Stockton Rush was on a ‘predatory’ mission to find wealthy clients to back his submersible’s offshore voyages to the Titanic, industry leaders claimed last night.
Rush died aboard the Titan last Sunday along with his four passengers when the ship imploded while heading for the Atlantic seafloor.
Insiders say the OceanGate boss was having a hard time finding wealthy clients to make the operation profitable. He also used his powers of persuasion to prevent respected figures in the exploration community from turning clients away for security reasons, the Times reports.
Patrick Lahey, president of Triton Submarines, told the paper: “He could even convince someone who knew and understood the risks…it was really quite predatory.”
Stockton Rush perished aboard the Titan along with his four passengers last Sunday when the vessel imploded as it headed for the Atlantic seabed.
Insiders say the OceanGate boss was having a hard time finding wealthy clients to make the operation profitable.
Mr. Rush talks to Mr. Bloom about taking part in one of his company’s trips to the wreck of the Titanic.
Mr. Lahey has experience at all levels of deep-sea craft building and was a close friend of Mr. Rush’s second mate, Paul-Henri ‘PH’ Nargeolet, 73, a skilled seaman and Titanic expert. .
Mr Lahey said: “It’s terribly sad that PH’s life ended this way, but PH knew the risks.” I told him in no uncertain terms why he shouldn’t be there. He understood. I think PH somehow thought that by being there he could help these guys avoid a tragedy, but he ended up in the middle of one.
‘I told PH that going out somehow sanctioned this operation. I told him, “You’re becoming an ambassador for this; people are looking at you and your record and the life you lead and the things you’ve done, which are extraordinary, and you’re kind of legitimizing what you’re doing.” [Oceangate] You are doing.”‘
A self-styled innovator, Rush never sought certification or classification for his vessel. He insisted that regulators couldn’t keep up with his technology.
Its combination of a cylindrical carbon fiber hull with titanium end caps was considered by industry experts to be a dangerous design flaw and was suggested to be the likely cause of the Titan’s implosion.
Mr Lahey, who has worked for 43 years in the field and whose Titan submarines were featured on the BBC’s Blue Planet, added: “At the very time this monstrosity was being manufactured, it was building the most capable submarines of our age. “.
A father and son who gave up their two tickets on the doomed Titan submersible say OceanGate’s CEO flew an ‘experimental’ plane to convince them to buy tickets.
Financier Jay Bloom had refused tickets aboard the submersible for himself and his son Sean after fearing they would not survive the trip.
Speaking to NewsNation, Bloom said concerns were raised after Rush flew to Las Vegas to convince him to board an “experimental plane.”
Mr Bloom said: ‘It was very worrying. The biggest red flag for my son was when Stockton came to see me in Las Vegas in March.
Mr Bloom had been considering getting on the doomed submersible, but major red flags forced him to back out of the adventure.
Jay Bloom and her son Sean nearly went on the doomed voyage to the Titanic, and were even offered a last-minute discount.
The Titan submersible imploded last week with five men on board
He said he was flying in an experimental two-seater plane that he built, so he was coming to Las Vegas in an experimental plane that he built to take me in an experimental submarine that he built to take me to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean. .’
Mr Bloom continued: ‘It’s a bit surreal. Every time I see a photo of the people who lost their lives in this tragic event.
“I look at the photo of the father and son who replaced my son and me and think how easily, but for the grace of God, that could have been our photo on the news.
‘When Stockton first approached me with the idea, it sounded very sexy, very exciting, a real bucket list item.
“My son is a huge Titanic fan, so I thought it would be great for us to do something together. The charm of the proposal is so compelling.
“My son talked to his friend and they expressed concerns about the boat, the marine life, some of the materials that were used in the construction.”
The US Coast Guard is currently investigating the cause of the Titan submersible’s underwater implosion and has not ruled out finding human remains, while hinting that the investigation could lead to criminal charges.
Capt. Jason Neubauer, who is chairing the US Coast Guard investigation, made the comments as the search and rescue aspects of the response came to a close.
British adventurer Hamish Harding and father and son Shahzada and Suleman Dawood died aboard the submersible, along with Stockton Rush and French national Paul-Henri Nargeolet.
Rescue operations are continuing and investigators have mapped the crash site, Capt. Neubauer said at a news conference in Boston on Sunday.
The Coast Guard opened what it calls a Marine Board of Investigation (MBI) on Friday, he said, and is working with the FBI to recover evidence.
Cpt Neubauer said the call for an MBI is the highest level of investigation conducted by the US Coast Guard. It is unclear how long this will take. The US Coast Guard said it does not charge for search and rescue operations.
This includes a salvage operation at the debris site on the seabed about 1,600 feet (488 meters) from the bow of the Titanic wreck, about 2-1/2 miles (4 km) below the surface.
The findings will be shared with the International Maritime Organization and other groups “to help improve the safety framework for submersible operations around the world,” Cpt Neubauer said.
Capt. Jason Neubauer said the Coast Guard opened what it calls a “marine board investigation” Friday and is working with the FBI to recover evidence.
Oceangate CEO Stockton Rush led the expedition last Sunday, which resulted in the deaths of all five men on board.
Commander Paul-Henry Nargeolet, a Titanic expert, lost his life in the Titan tragedy
Shahzada Dawood, 48, (right) one of Pakistan’s richest men, who along with her teenage son Suleman Dawood, 19, (left) died on the Titan
Hamish Harding’s cousin, Kathleen Cosnett, wrote: “It’s quite touching that tomorrow was his birthday. His father died in June and my father also died in June.
He said the Coast Guard is in contact with the families of the five people killed and that investigators are “taking all precautions on site if we are going to find any human remains.”
Yesterday the children of British billionaire Hamish Harding paid tribute to the ‘greatest father’ who they say ‘constantly sought to be the best man he could be’.
Rear Admiral John Mauger, of the First Coast Guard District, said: ‘The MBI is also responsible for the accountability aspects of the incident and can make recommendations to appropriate authorities to apply civil or criminal sanctions as necessary.’
The US Coast Guard said Thursday that all five people aboard the sub were dead after the vessel suffered a “catastrophic implosion.”
One of Mr. Harding’s sons, who was not named in the statement released via Action Aviation, praised the billionaire for being a “hard-working, tenacious businessman” and having “inspired me more than anyone will know.”
The adventurer and his wife Linda have two children, Rory and Giles. Mr. Harding is also the stepfather of her two children from a previous relationship, Laurena and Brian.
I am Rakesh Sharma, I associated with Elite News as an Editor, since 2021. I take care of all the news operations like content, budget, hiring and policy making.