Engineer’s sentence and last radio message show full drama – “I’m not getting in there”

The Titan disaster is still being investigated. During recent hearings, it emerged that not even a senior employee considered the submersible to be safe.

Munich – In June 2023, the submarine “Titan” embarked on an expedition to the sunken Titanic, from which it was never to return. Shortly after takeoff, the Titan imploded. In the drama surrounding the Titanic submersible, all occupants lost their lives. A hearing is currently being held to investigate the accident. Particularly shocking is the testimony of a witness, Tony Nissen, the chief engineer of the “Titan”, who apparently refused to board the submersible.

The hearing, which is scheduled to last until September 27, aims to “address the historical events leading up to the accident, compliance with regulations, crew member duties and qualifications, mechanical and structural systems, emergency response and the submersible industry,” according to the Coast Guard.

Fatal accident during “Titan” expedition: engineer refused to board

A clear picture is painted, as even Tony Nissen, the chief engineer of the “Titan”, had no confidence in the submersible. Former passengers of the “Titan” had already spoken of a “suicide mission”. Now the statement of the chief engineer of the submersible is causing additional controversy. Nissen felt pressured by his superior to use the submersible, although he considered it unsafe. “I'm not getting in there,” he is said to have said to Stockton Rush, the co-founder of the company OceanGate, as AP reported.

Last contact with the submersible “Titan”: Even the crew did not consider the boat safe

During the hearing, the coast guard released pictures of the crashed submersible for the first time. The last radio message from the “Titan” was also made public. At first, the crew still seemed to feel safe, saying in one of the last messages to the support ship Polar Prince: “Everything is OK here.”

But within minutes things changed, as the last radio message from the “Titan” states: “Dropped two wts”. According to CNN This probably refers to the weight that was dropped in order to return to the surface. Just six seconds after receiving the radio message, contact with the submersible is lost.

Search for the “Titan”: Father and son die in submersible

The search for the “Titan” lasted for days. Among those on board were the billionaire Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, which was particularly tragic because the 19-year-old only boarded the ill-fated submarine for his father's sake. The sound of the implosion was even recorded by the Navy. The wreckage was later removed hundreds of meters from the Titanic, according to investigators. Despite the failure, the next billionaire plans to build a submersible to travel to the Titanic – a plan that has already attracted criticism. (Kiba)