Nearly a year after the catastrophic implosion of the OceanGate Titan submersible, another ambitious endeavour aims to conquer the depths of the North Atlantic and safely reach the Titanic wreckage. Larry Connor, a billionaire businessman from Ohio, US, has unveiled plans to demonstrate that a dive to the historic site can be achieved securely with the right engineering.
Connor, 74, who is no stranger to exploration, shared his vision with The Wall Street Journal, stating the importance of proper safety measures. His determination was sparked shortly after the tragic Titan incident in June 2023 that killed all its occupants in an instant.
He reached out to Patrick Lahey, CEO of Triton Submarines, who had previously criticised OceanGate's lax safety standards, and is now interested in the project.
Connor’s expedition will be conducted in partnership with Triton Submarines, using the state-of-the-art Triton 4000/2 "Abyss Explorer." Priced at $20 million, this two-person submersible is acclaimed as “the world’s deepest diving acrylic sub," capable of descending over 13,000 feet.
Lahey, who co-founded Triton with Bruce Jones, will join Connor on this mission. The exact date for this ambitious dive has not been disclosed.
The memory of the OceanGate disaster looms large over this new initiative.
On June 18, 2023, five people embarked on OceanGate’s ill-fated journey to the Titanic site, located 12,500 feet below the surface. Each passenger, including British businessman Hamish Harding and Pakistani nationals Shahzada Dawood and his young son Suleman, paid $250,000 for the voyage.
The submersible, constructed from carbon fibre and titanium, was criticised for its unconventional design and reliance on a video game controller for navigation.
The Titan lost communication with its mothership 90 minutes into the dive and is believed to have imploded shortly thereafter. A massive rescue effort ensued, culminating in the discovery of the submersible's debris near the Titanic's bow on June 22, along with some human remains.
Larry Connor is the founder of The Connor Group, a luxury real estate firm based in Dayton, Ohio, boasting a net worth of $2 billion and a real estate portfolio valued at $5 billion.
Connor has previously ventured to the Mariana Trench and the International Space Station. With his risky mission, hee aims to prove that deep-sea exploration can be conducted safely and without incident.
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