Underwater noises detected by Canadian aircraft, as oxygen levels reduce to around 30 hours of breathable air
Two Britons who have visited the wreck of the Titanic have expressed confidence in the submersible’s crew and said there is a chance they will be recovered.
Dik Barton, the first British diver to see the Titanic wreck, told ITV’s Good Morning Britain it a “dangerous” and “hostile” place to be and he “100%” felt in danger during previous expeditions.
The US Coast Guard, US Navy and Canadian Coast Guard are coordinating the search with input from OceanGate, the submersible’s operator.
Deep Energy, a pipe-laying vessel with underwater capabilities, and Polar Prince, the vessel the Titan launched from, are on the scene. Other craft, including a Canadian vessel with a mobile decompression chamber and the French research ship Atalante, which has an underwater robot that can descend to 4,000 metres, are en route.
The US Navy is is sending a Flyaway Deep Ocean Salvage System (FADOSS), designed to recover heavy undersea objects such as aircraft or small vessels, and the the US military is sending unspecified assets.
Two US C-130 aircraft are providing air support and carrying out search and rescue flights, as well as two Canadian planes.
ROVs (remote operated underwater vehicles) from the British company Magellan, which specialises in deep ocean investigations, imaging and recovery operations, have been offered but are mostly in Europe so would take time to reach the area.
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