A combination of design flaws, untested materials, and lack of regulation may have led to the tragedy.

The tragic loss of the Titan submersible, which led to the deaths of five individuals on board during a deep dive to the Titanic wreck in June 2023, has raised several concerns about the vessel’s design, materials, and operational decisions.

OceanGate’s Titan was designed with an experimental structure, utilising carbon fibre for its hull—a material typically not used in deep-sea submersibles. This decision was made in pursuit of a lighter and more cost-effective alternative to traditional materials such as steel or titanium, which are commonly used for underwater vehicles. However, carbon fibre has not been tested at the extreme depths the Titan was meant to reach, where the pressure is 300 times greater than at sea level.

Reports from a lawsuit filed by a former OceanGate employee, David Lochridge, suggest that there were significant concerns regarding the Titan’s construction. Lochridge claimed that the carbon fibre hull was prone to faults and defects, with flaws that could worsen under the immense pressure found at depths of 3,800 metres (12,500 feet). Despite these concerns, OceanGate continued to use the material, maintaining that the design was safe.

Furthermore, the Titan lacked third-party safety certification, a practice standard in the industry. A letter from the Marine Technology Society’s Manned Underwater Vehicles Committee in 2018 expressed concerns about OceanGate’s failure to subject the submersible to a formal risk assessment by international maritime safety organisations. The absence of independent oversight raised alarms about the vessel’s design and its ability to withstand such perilous conditions.

The Titan’s hull was equipped with a real-time monitoring system designed to detect any stress or damage, but experts argue that this system would not have been able to react fast enough to prevent a catastrophic failure. The implosion of the submersible occurred so suddenly that it was detected almost immediately by military systems monitoring underwater events.

Although OceanGate defended its choices, insisting that the Titan’s design was based on innovation rather than following traditional regulations, the tragedy has led many to question the ethics of commercialising such dangerous ventures. The incident has sparked a broader conversation about the risks of underwater tourism, particularly when it involves wealthy passengers paying for expeditions to one of the most famous and dangerous wreck sites in history.

The tragic end of the Titan underscores the importance of stringent safety measures, testing, and oversight in the field of deep-sea exploration, particularly when it involves human lives.