The massive search operation to find the Titan submersible with five people on board that went missing on Sunday on a trip to view the wreckage of the Titanic entered its fourth day today. Multiple agencies are racing against time to rescue the five people, who include a space-traveling British billionaire, one of Pakistan's wealthiest men and a retired commander in the French navy.
In a development indicating hope of survivors, a Canadian aircraft searching the Titan submersible detected banging sounds on Wednesday. The Titan is equipped with a four-day emergency oxygen supply. It is estimated that the five missing passengers have just 24 hours of oxygen supply left inside the vessel.
Who Are On Board The Missing Titanic Submersible?
Hamish Harding
Hamish Harding is a British billionaire and chairman of aviation company Action Aviation.
Harding had previously flown to space in 2022 onboard Blue Origin's fifth human-crewed flight, and set three world records, including the longest time spent at full ocean depth during a dive to the deepest part of the Mariana Trench.
He was also on board the 2019 "One More Orbit" flight mission that set a record for the fastest circumnavigation of earth by aircraft over both geographic poles.
Harding also collaborated with the Indian government on a project to reintroduce eight wild cheetahs from Namibia to India in September last year.
Shahzada Dawood And His Son Suleman
Shahzada Dawood, 48, is one of the wealthiest men in Pakistan and is the vice-chairman of Karachi headquartered conglomerate Engro, which has investments in fertilisers, vehicle manufacturing, energy and digital technologies.
Both Dawood and his son Suleman are aboard the vessel.
With a background in fertilisers and involvement in organisations like the Dawood Foundation and the SETI Institute, Shahzada's interest in exploring natural habitats is well known. Suleman is a science fiction enthusiast.
Dawood lives in Britain with his wife and two children. Born in Pakistan, Shahzada Dawood moved to the UK to study law at the University of Buckingham.
Shahzada also has an MSc in global texting marketing from Philadelphia University, US. He is also the vice chairman of Dawood Hercules Corporation, which makes chemicals.
He also sits on the Global Advisory Board for King Charles' charity, Prince's Trust International.
He was selected as "Young Global Leader" 2012 by the World Economic Forum.
Paul-Henri Nargeolet
Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, is an experienced deep diver and led the first expedition to the Titanic wreckage in 1987. He served as commander in the French navy.
He is also the director of RMS Titanic Inc, an underwater research company that owns the rights to the Titanic wreck site.
Nargeolet has also appeared in several films and documentaries about the disaster, including "Titanic: The Final Word with James Cameron".
While speaking on the pitfalls associated with deep diving, Nargeolet, in a 2020 interview with France Bleu radio, said, "I am not afraid to die, I think it will happen one day."
Stockton Rush
Stockton Rush, 61, is the founder and CEO of the vessel's US-based operating company OceanGate.
Rush became the youngest jet transport-rated pilot in the world in 1981, when he was just 19, according to his biography.