The U.S. Coast Guard said tonight that two C-130 flights have been completed from USCG Air Station Elizabeth City in an effort to locate a tourist submarine that went missing Sunday after descending to view the wreck of the Titanic in the Atlantic Ocean.
The Canadian vessel Polar Prince, which transports the 21-foot submersible to the dive site, left St John’s, Newfoundland, on Friday. The ship lost communication with the sub about an hour and 45 minutes after it descended.
First Coast Guard District Commander Rear Adm. John Mauger told reporters earlier today that they believed “there is somewhere between 70 and the full 96 hours” of emergency oxygen “available at this point.”
Mauger said the remote location, about 900 miles east of Cape Cod, made the rescue effort challenging.
“Rescue Coordination Center Halifax is assisting with a P8 Poseidon aircraft in the search. The P8 has underwater detection capabilities,” USCG Northeast tweeted.
The Polar Prince and U.S. Air Force 106th Rescue Wing “will continue to do surface searches throughout the evening,” USCG said. “Surface/subsurface search by Canadian P8 Poseidon aircraft to continue in the morning.”
The company OceanGate offers crewed 5-person submersibles for “commercial projects, scientific research and exploration,” and said in a statement today that the company is “exploring and mobilizing all options to bring the crew back safely.”
“Our entire focus is on the crewmembers in the submersible and their families,” the company said, thanking government agencies for their “extensive assistance.”
