Jason Frederick, U.S. Coast Guard Spokesman declared While the chances of rescuing the crew members of the Titan submersible missing in the Atlantic Ocean remain, the search and rescue operation is in an active phase. However, the deputy head of the BARS design bureau, the captain of manned underwater vehicles, Ivan Konik, in a conversation with Russian media, made a disappointing forecast about the fate of the crew.
“Each underwater vehicle is equipped with a life support system for three days. It’s by the rules, so to speak. That is, they have no air supply for three days. So, if the strong body did not crash into it, if it did not burst, then they are still alive,” the expert believes.
However, as noted by Konik, if during the remaining time the crew does not emerge on their own, there is practically no chance of saving them.
“It is very difficult to find such a small object at such depth. That’s all <…> My prognosis is the worst. If they do not surface on their own and do not act in depth, then the prognosis is extremely unfavorable,” Konik said.
Bathyscaphe “Titan” went on an expedition to the wreck of the “Titanic” in the North Atlantic Ocean on June 19. There are five people aboard the submersible. Typically, diving to the liner at a depth of 3.8 km and returning to the surface takes eight hours, and the entire expedition takes eight days. However, less than an hour and a half into the expedition, communication with the crew was lost.
The search for the device continues on the third day. The rescue effort involves the US and Canadian navies, as well as commercial deep-diving companies. Currently, at least eight specialized vessels operate in the research area.
According to OceanGate Expeditions, owner of the bathyscaphe, the air supply with five passengers on board is designed for 96 hours. According to the calculations of Russian media, at the moment the air supply to the crew does not exceed 15 hours from the moment of loss of communication.
US Coastguard Rear Admiral John Mauger told the British Broadcasting Corporation BBC that the expedition members had less than 20 hours of oxygen. In turn, an expert on the study of the remains of the Titanic, Tim Maltin, told CNN that the crew could extend the oxygen supply for a day if they refused to talk.
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