Titan sub: design flaws and company groupthink central to catastrophe, report finds

Canadian safety officials have issued a damning report on the Titan submersible’s final voyage, finding that the US company behind the expedition was overcome by “groupthink” and “confirmation bias” and failed to understand the profound risks confronting their largely untested craft.

The 6.7-metre carbon fibre submersible left for the Titanic wreck in June 2023 and lost communications nearly two hours after departing with five passengers; investigators later found the wreck nearly 400 miles off Newfoundland and concluded the passengers died instantly when the structure imploded.

Inspectors identified numerous failures in the submersible’s design and testing. OceanGate built two 1/3 scale models and conducted six tests on them, all of which failed at depths above the Titanic’s resting place. The company altered the design to mitigate “ply waviness,” but was unaware that the Titan’s carbon fibre cylinder accumulated damage on repeated deep dives.

Canada, Newfoundland

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