Titan sub hearings live: Co-founder set to detail OceanGate inner workings as he testifies before Coast Guard
Guillermo Sohnlein co-founded Titan owner OceanGate with Stockton Rush in 2009 and has previously defended his former business partner
Your support helps us to tell the story
My recent work focusing on Latino voters in Arizona has shown me how crucial independent journalism is in giving voice to underrepresented communities.
Your support is what allows us to tell these stories, bringing attention to the issues that are often overlooked. Without your contributions, these voices might not be heard.
Every dollar you give helps us continue to shine a light on these critical issues in the run up to the election and beyond
Eric Garcia
Washington Bureau Chief
The co-founder of OceanGate is expected to offer insight into the inner workings of the company as he testifies before the US Coast Guard.
Guillermo Sohnlein founded Titan owner OceanGate with CEO Stockton Rush in 2009, who was among the five people who died when the submersible imploded in June 2023.
Sohnlein left the company in 2013 but after the submersible’s implosion, he has defended his former business partner. Another witness expected to testify today includes former OceanGate engineering director Phil Brooks.
Last week, Patrick Lahey, the co-founder of Triton Submarines, OceanGate’s rival, told the hearing he informed Rush about concerns he had with the Titan’s prior glass dome design when he saw the submersible in 2019, and stressed the importance of certifying the vessel.
Rush called classification “an impediment to innovation,” Lahey told US Coast Guard panelists. Classification is not a requirement for operating a deep sea vessel, but Lahey said he’d never sell one without classification.
Other witnesses raised concerns about the submersible’s design, including Antonella Wilby, a former OceanGate operations and engineering tech contractor.
Proceedings will resume this morning at 8.30am ET.
MBI created an animated model of the Titan’s doomed voyage
Final communications between the Titan crew and its support vessel, revealed
“All good here” were some of the final words that the doomed Titan submersible crew communicated before the submersible imploded on its mission to the Titanic wreckage site in June 2023.
The message, revealed as part of the Coast Guard’s Monday hearing into the circumstances of the failed mission, was sent to support vessel Polar Prince on June 18, 2023, shortly before the submersible imploded, killing all five of its crew members. It was an incident that captivated both sides of the Atlantic as crews made a mad dash to save the crew after the sub lost contact with the surface - with the world unaware that the lives had been lost.
The Coast Guard played an animated re-enactment of the Titan’s voyage that captured the submersible’s final, spotty exchange with the Polar Prince, during the Monday hearing that shed new light on the sub’s final mission.
Around 10am on June 18, Polar Prince asked the Titan crew whether they were able to see the support vessel on the submersible’s display. The support vessel asked the crew the same question seven times over the course of seven minutes. The Titan crew then sent “k,” meaning it was asking for a communications check.
Read the full story...
Final messages revealed from the Titan sub before tragic implosion
The anticipated two-week-long hearings kicked off with testimony from a former OceanGate engineer, who said he was fired after warning about the ship’s carbon fiber hull years before its catastrophic voyage
WATCH: Titan crew's final three-word text revealed in haunting animation of submersible's journey
The US Coast Guard has released exhibits relating to the hearing
WATCH: What happened to the Titan tourist submersible?
Proceedings will resume again at 8.30am on Monday
Antonella Wilby has been released as a witness. Friday’s hearing is now over and proceedings will resume next week.
Wilby says she wanted to go to the board of directors about safety concerns but was warned about being sued
After the “loud bang” incident, Wilby says she wanted to approach the board of directors with concerns she had about OceanGate’s operations, but a colleague warned her that her NDA did not cover the board and she could be sued for speaking out.
She decided against raising her concerns.
Hearing taking a short break
Proceedings will resume momentarily
Wilby compares OceanGate operations to ‘safety theater'
The former tech contractor, who primarily worked with software navigation at OceanGate, expressed she did not think the Titan submersible or the comany’s actions were safe.
“No aspect of the operation seemed safe,” said Wilby, adding that parts of the vessel looked “thrown together.”
‘I felt brushed to the side’ former contractor says
During a dive in 2022, Wilby says a customer reported a “loud bang.”
The noise heard during one of OceanGate’s expeditions has become a frequent talking point throughout the hearings.
While debriefing following the incident, Wilby says customer reported hearing a “loud bang” that was “as loud as an explosion.” Stockton Rush “shut it down” she said. One crew member on a boat above the water said he could hear the noise from the surface.
The OceanGate team later discovery the carbon fiber hull had moved.
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments