Perished Titanic sub CEO Stockton Rush admitted his biggest fear was the vessel not being able to get back to the surface.
All five aboard a submersible missing near the wreck of the Titanic died after the vessel suffered a “catastrophic implosion” in the ocean depths, the US Coast Guard said
The sombre announcement ended a multinational search-and-rescue operation that captivated the world since the small tourist craft went missing in the North Atlantic on Sunday.
Mr Rush, 61, is stuck on stricken Titan with four other crew members as robots combed the seabed in the desperate hope of a miracle.
Former passengers on the “experimental” sub raised concerns over the apparent lack of safety equipment, and the fact there’s no emergency escape.
The Sun reports in a haunting interview last year, Mr Rush told how his main worry was that the sub – created by OceanGate and steered by a gaming controller – would get trapped under the water.
He told CBS: “What I worry about most are things that will stop me from being able to get to the surface.
“Overhangs, fish nets, entanglement hazards.”
But he brushed off the concern, and said the 22ft vessel would be able to avoid such hazards.
Mr Rush, who perished with Hamish Harding, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman, added: “And, that’s just a technique, piloting technique.
“It’s pretty clear – if it’s an overhang, don’t go under it. If there is a net, don’t go near it.
“So, you can avoid those if you are just slow and steady.”
He also claimed there should be “limits” to safety precautions.
Mr Rush continued: “You know, at some point, safety is just a pure waste.
“I mean, if you just want to be safe, don’t get out of bed, don’t get in your car, don’t do anything. At some point, you’re going to take some risk, and it really is a risk-reward question.
“I think I can do this just as safely while breaking the rules.”
And in the clip from last year shared on YouTube, Mr Rush can be heard saying he had “broken some of the rules” to make the sub.
He said the windows became “squeezed” because of the water pressure on descent, and a “warning” goes off if the vessel is going to “fail”.
The operator of a submersible missing near the wreck of the Titanic said it believed all five people on board were dead, due to what the Coast Guard described as a “catastrophic” implosion of the vessel in the ocean depths.
The solemn announcement from Oceangate came hours after rescuers said a “debris field” had been discovered following a dayslong search – adding to fears that, even if the vessel were still intact, its oxygen may have run out.
“We now believe that our CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet, have sadly been lost,” Oceangate said in a statement.
“These men were true explorers who shared a distinct spirit of adventure, and a deep passion for exploring and protecting the world’s oceans,” it said.
“We grieve the loss of life and joy they brought to everyone they knew.”
Concerns had been raised over the “experimental” nature of the vessel and the inability for the passengers inside to escape since they are bolted within.
Made by OceanGate Expeditions, the cramped 22ft (6.7m) carbon fibre submersible had only one porthole at the front and did not have a GPS system.
The deep-sea sub was instead guided by text messages exchanged using an acoustic system with a team waiting helplessly above water.
OceanGate claimed Boeing and the University of Washington were involved in the design, but both have denied this.
Arthur Loibl, who embarked on the daring voyage in 2021 with Titanic expert Paul-Henri Nargeolet and Mr Rush, branded the trip a “suicide mission”.
But just before it was set to launch, he told how the bracket of the stabilisation tube – designed to balance the sub – tore and it was reattached with zip ties.
This article originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced with permission