A billionaire British explorer was among five people aboard the missing cruise ship Titanic, which is somewhere on the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

A search and rescue operation is underway for the submersible Titan, after it sank on Sunday morning (June 18) and lost contact with its support ship, the Canadian research vessel Polar Prince, after approximately one hour 45 minutes submerged in water. .

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Billionaire British explorer Hamish Harding, famed French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet, OceanGate Expeditions founder Stockton Rush, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood were all on board.

During a press conference on Wednesday afternoon (June 21), Captain Jamie Frederick of the US Coast Guard assured everyone that authorities are doing everything they can to locate the child. The ship went missing as the search intensified with more technology.

But with the passengers expected to run out of oxygen at around 5:30 a.m. ET on Thursday, US and Canadian search teams and a French fleet are on a race against time to get one. miracle rescue.

Below we look at what we know about the year that ran aground on the sub.

Hamish Harding

Hamish Harding, 58, is the chairman of the private jet airline Action Aviation. The company confirmed Mr. Harding was one of the mission specialists on board the five-man OceanGate Expeditions.

Mr Harding, who previously went to the bottom of the ocean aboard the Challenger Deep and into space aboard Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin, took to Facebook on Saturday (June 17) to announce that he would be joining the OceanGate Expeditions for Titanic mission this week.

On Monday (June 19) – as news of the missing submersible spread – Harding’s step-son Brian Szasz confirmed that his stepfather was on board when it went missing.

“Hamish Harding, my stepfather, went missing on the submarine. Thoughts and prayers,” he wrote on Facebook, sharing photos and posts of the family.

The father-of-two is a seasoned explorer and holds three Guinness World Records, including the longest time spent in complete depths of the ocean by a manned ship. Mr. Harding dived to the lowest depth of the Mariana Trench in March 2021.

Paul-Henri Nargeolet

On board the submarine were French diver Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, Titanic expert Larry Daley. told CBCNews.

Mr. Nargeolet had 25 years of service in the French navy and worked with Mr. Daley on his first Titanic dive 20 years ago.

OceanGate described Mr. Nargeolet as “Titanic’s greatest explorer.” He led several expeditions to the Titanic and completed 35 submersible dives. He is the director of underwater research for RMS Titanic, Inc – leading expeditions to the wreck to recover artifacts.

The former naval officer was born in Chamonix, France but spent his early years in Africa with his parents. He was married to American newsreader Michelle Marsh until her death in 2017.

Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman

Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his son Suleman Dawood, 19, were named as two of the others on board the sub in a statement from the Dawood Family.

The Dawood family said in a statement obtained by CNN: “At present, contact with their submersible has been lost and the information available is very limited.

“We are grateful for the concern of our colleagues and friends and would like to ask everyone to pray for their safety while allowing the family privacy at this time. The family is well taken care of and is praying to Allah for the safe return of their family members,” the statement continued.

The couple are understood to live in the UK.

Mr. Dawood, a business advisor and board member of Prince’s Trust International, lives in the mansion in Surrey with his wife Christine, son Suleman and daughter Alina, according to reports. Daily mail.

Mr Dawood’s sister, Sabrina Dawood, told Sky News that Dawood’s family is solely focused on rescuing her brother and grandson and hoping they will return safely.

“We are extremely grateful for the efforts of the media during this difficult time; Your continued coverage of the missing Titan submersible certainly plays a big part in the world’s ability to access relevant updates on this matter.” she told the British news channel.

“At this time, the sole focus of the Dawood family is rescuing our dear Shahzada and Suleman Dawood and we are unable to address any questions or comments at this time.

“We are confident that family privacy will be protected as we address this crisis. May Shahzada and Suleman return to us unharmed.

“We are sure they will be as touched as we are by the support of the global community during this difficult time.”

Stockton fever

Stockton Rush, 61, CEO of OceanGate Expeditions, was among those on board – the company confirmed Tuesday afternoon.

His company, which provides manned diving services to researchers and deep-ocean explorers, operates the missing submersible Titan.

Mr. Rush first began his career as a pilot at the age of 19 after qualifying from the United Airlines Jet Training Academy. At that time, he became the youngest jet transport pilot in the world.

According to Mr. Rush story on his company’s website, he graduated from Princeton University with a BSE in aeronautical, aeronautical and spaceflight engineering in 1984. He served as the DC-8’s first officer aboard the flights. fly to Europe and the Middle East during the summer between college years.

After graduation, Mr. Rush joined the McDonnell Douglas Corporation as a flight test engineer. He spent two years at Edwards Air Force Base.

He received his MBA from the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business in 1989 and in later years served on the Board of Directors of the Flight Museum, the board of directors of the enterprise software company Entomo, and as president of the Flight Museum. Remote Control Technology.

In 2012, Mr. Rush also founded the non-profit OceanGate Foundation while sitting on the board of BlueView Technologies, a manufacturer of high-frequency sonar systems.

Others have been found safe

Meanwhile, other explorers who joined the Titanic expedition confirmed that they were safe.

Deep sea explorer Rory Golden posted on Facebook that he was safe and thanked everyone for the well wishes as he said he is currently focused on helping “our friends.” “.

Explorer Renata Rojas also posted about joining the expedition before Monday’s incident, with a friend commenting that she had spoken to her and that she was safe.

OceanGate Expeditions, which offers eight-day cruises to see the wreck of the Titanic at a cost of $250,000 per person, confirmed Monday that its submarine was lost at sea along with its crew. crew on board.

The company said in a statement to CBS News that it is “exploring and mobilizing all options for the safe return of the crew.”

“Our entire focus is on the crew members of the submersible and their families,” they said, adding that “we are grateful for the extensive support we have provided.” received from a number of government agencies and deep-sea companies in an attempt to re-establish contact with the submersible. “.

The submersible works by being launched from a mother ship, then recovering it at the end of the mission.

A search and rescue operation led by the Boston Coast Guard is currently underway in the Atlantic Ocean.

The company last posted on Twitter on June 15, detailing their latest Titanic expeditions.

“It’s been an extremely busy two weeks! Thank you to all of the diving teams that joined us – here’s a look at our Mission 3 and Mission 4 crew,” the company said.

The Titanic, operated by the White Star Line, sank during its maiden voyage across the Atlantic Ocean in 1912.

The ship – the largest ship at the time – departed Southampton, United Kingdom, on April 10, 1912, with more than 2,200 passengers and crew on board bound for New York City.

Five days after the voyage, the Titanic hit an iceberg and sank to the bottom of the ocean. More than 1,500 people died.

In recent years, people have taken trips to visit the wreckage that now lies about 12,500 feet below the Atlantic Ocean, about 370 miles off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada.