Earth Connection|Loypur: Never go to the Titan again
Arthur Loibl was on a plane from Munich to Berlin when he learned that the American deep-sea submersible Titanic, which was investigating the wreckage of the Titanic, was missing, and the flood of messages made his phone hot.
Leuble is a 61-year-old retired German businessman and adventurer. In 2021, he participated in an undersea exploration event organized by the American Ocean Gate Exploration Company and was one of the first customers of the Titan submersible.
On June 6, a reporter from the Beijing News spoke with Loipur. He said he was shocked to learn of the Titan's disappearance when he first learned that Stockton Rush, CEO of Oceangate Explorations, and French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, both explored the ocean floor with Leuble.
Loible points out that every adventurer should be thoughtful about his or her decisions, and money doesn't guarantee that you'll survive, "I think I'll never go again." ”
One of the first passengers to buy tickets for the Titan submersible
Beijing News: What inspired you to want to see the wreck of the "Titanic" in the first place? How did you get in touch with Oceangate Exploration?
Loipur: In 2016, I first had the idea to visit the wreck of the Titanic during my trip to Antarctica. In 2017, I learned from friends in Canada that a new company had emerged on the market that could offer the opportunity to dive to observe the Titanic. I then contacted an agency based in England and they helped me get the ticket in a few months. I was one of the first people to buy tickets for the Titan submersible.
There were also 5 people in our group, including Stockton Rush, CEO of Oceangate Exploration, French explorer Paul-Henri Narjolais, and two people from England.
Beijing News: What preparations did you make before entering the "Titan"? Does Oceangate Exploration give you special training?
Loibur: We didn't have special training, just some safety advice: how to get out of the cabin and go on to the Titan. Arctic Horizon is a big ship, transferred from the cabin to the Titan on the high seas, people can fall into the sea, we just got some guidance on this.
There is no guidance on what to do inside the Titan. Because there is nothing in it, and we can't do anything. We had to sit at the bottom and wait to dive down to the wreckage of the Titanic.
There have been problems with both pipes and batteries
Beijing News: What warnings did they make before diving deep? Do passengers need to sign a special liability clause? Did they make you fully aware of the dangers and possible scenarios of this dive?
Loibul: We had to sign additional documents on board. They told us that the deep submersible was special, but not yet certified. (Note: In the United States, where Oceangate Exploration is headquartered, there is no law requiring submersibles to be certified by any regulatory body.) There are only 10 submersibles in the world that can dive 4000,<> meters and above, and all submersibles are certified except for Oceangate Exploration. )
We are required to sign some liability waivers and Oceangate will not be held liable if anything happens, such as serious physical problems, and the passenger and his or her family waives the right to act.
Beijing News: Can you share with us your experience inside the Titan? How long did the overall dive last? How far did you dive?
Loipur: We dived to 3900 meters and the whole process lasted about 10.5 hours. Normally, a trip is only about eight or nine hours, but when the Titan entered the sea, there were some problems with the pipes on the left and right sides, so we were brought back to the ship and the repair work was carried out for 1.5 hours.
Inside the "Titan" there was nothing. We can only sit at the bottom of [the deep submersible], not kneeling, nor standing. Inside, there is a small window, about 40 centimeters in diameter, and can be connected to external cameras using mobile phones, tablets and computers. In the depths of the sea, there is nothing, only parts of the "Titanic", and some small shrimp and fish.
The French explorer Paul-Henri Narjolay, who was tragically killed in the Titan accident, was with me at the time. I remember him saying to us, "The view today is unique, the currents are very small, this trip is very wonderful, we can take a lot of wonderful pictures, see the Titanic very clearly, it's great." ”
Beijing News: What difficulties did you encounter during the whole deep dive? Did you feel worried or scared at one of these moments?
Loible: I didn't see anything wrong when the peripheral plumbing failed, I'm a mechanical engineer myself, I know how it works, how they fix it, so it's not a problem for me. My only concern is that there always seems to be something wrong with their battery. They once dived to 1600 meters, but the battery power was insufficient and they had to return. Our dive was also delayed by 4 hours due to a dead battery.
So I'm only worried about the battery, when we get to the bottom of the (ocean) and see the wreckage of the Titanic, is the battery still working, or will there also be a problem? Power system issues such as batteries are also what I feel a little suspicious in hindsight.
Such deep diving commercial activities may end there
Beijing News: How did you feel when you heard the news of the disappearance of the Titan?
Loibul: The initial moment, I was very shocked. It was on Monday afternoon (June 6 local time) and I was on the plane from Munich to Berlin, and when I got off the plane, my phone kept ringing, and at one point it became very hot. At first, everyone thought that maybe everyone was still alive, but the deep submersible was temporarily missing, and we didn't know that an implosion had occurred. I was really shocked, felt terrible all week and I missed these five people so much.
Beijing News: As an experienced explorer and explorer, what does the "implosion" incident of "Titan" mean for the extreme tourism industry?
Loible: I think business activities like this [diving] tourism came to an end last week. If you want to explore the depths of the seabed, such an adventure will definitely require greater safety, stricter certification and supervision by authoritative bodies, and the whole activity will become more expensive.
Beijing News: I'm sure you've also noticed the surge in extreme tourism, and people's growing desire for authentic and exciting experiences. What would you like to say to other adventurers?
Royble: Everyone has to do what they want, some people can do it, some people may be richer, but they don't take that risk, everyone has to make their own decisions. At least from my experience, to do this kind of adventure, you have to be a little crazy. Other adventurers should think hard about what they want to do, consider their family, and money doesn't guarantee that you'll survive. When I went diving and everyone thought I must be crazy. After two years, I also changed my perspective and I can tell you that I will never go again.
I also bought a ticket to space, but now I'm not sure if I want to go yet. I'll have to spend the next few months thinking hard and making decisions, and this week has been crazy for me. Will I go to space? Will I cancel this ticket? I do not know.
Beijing News reporter Luan Ruoxi Chen Chao