On June 18, 2023, a deep-sea submersible Titan, operated by the U.S.-based institution OceanGate Expeditions and carrying 5 radical connected a voyage to the wreck of the Titanic, was declared missing. Following a five-day search, the U.S. Coast Guard announced astatine a June 22 property league that the vas suffered a "catastrophic implosion" that killed each 5 passengers connected board.

Pakistani-born businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman Dawood, some British citizens, were also among the victims.

Their household is 1 of the wealthiest successful Pakistan, with Shahzada Dawood serving as the vice president of Engro Corporation, per The New York Times. His lad was studying astatine the University of Strathclyde successful Glasgow, Scotland.

Shahzada's sister Azmeh Dawood told NBC News that Suleman had expressed reluctance astir going connected the voyage, informing a comparative that helium "wasn't precise up for it" and felt "terrified" astir the travel to research the wreckage of the Titanic, but yet went to delight his father, a Titanic fan, for Father's Day.

The Dawood Foundation mourned their deaths successful a connection to the website, saying, "It is with profound grief that we denote the passing of Shahzada and Suleman Dawood. Our beloved sons were aboard OceanGagte's Titan submersible that perished underwater. Please proceed to support the departed souls and our household successful your prayers during this hard play of mourning."

OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush was the aviator of the Titan. The entrepreneur—who founded the probe institution successful 2009 successful Everett, Wash.—had long been funny successful exploration. Rush, 61, previously said helium dreamed of becoming the archetypal idiosyncratic connected Mars and once said that he'd "like to beryllium remembered arsenic an innovator."

In summation to starring voyages to spot the remnants of the Titanic, Rush had different astonishing transportation to the historical 1912 event: His woman Wendy Rush is the great-great-granddaughter of a couple who died connected the Titanic, Ida and Isidor Straus.

British billionaire Hamish Harding confirmed helium was a portion of the mission in a June 17 Instagram post, a time earlier the submersible went into the h2o and disappeared.

"I americium arrogant to yet denote that I joined @oceangateexped for their RMS TITANIC Mission arsenic a ngo specializer connected the sub going down to the Titanic," helium wrote. "Due to the worst wintertime successful Newfoundland successful 40 years, this ngo is apt to beryllium the archetypal and lone manned ngo to the Titanic successful 2023. A upwind model has conscionable opened up and we are going to effort a dive tomorrow."

Harding—the president of craft institution Action Aviation—said the radical had started steaming from St. Johns, Newfoundland, Canada and was readying to commencement dive operations astir 4 a.m. connected June 18. The 58-year-old added, "Until past we person a batch of preparations and briefings to do."

His past explorations included traveling to the deepest portion of the water successful the Mariana Trench, telling Gulf News successful 2021, "It was an incredibly hostile environment. To question to parts of the Challenger Deep wherever nary quality had ever been earlier was genuinely remarkable."

The Dubai-based businessman besides circumnavigated the Earth by level with the One More Orbit task and, past year, took a travel to abstraction on Amazon founder Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin New Shepard rocket. Harding shared his emotion for escapade with his lad Giles, described arsenic a "teen explorer" connected his Instagram.

As for the 5th member, a typical for French explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet told the New York Times that helium was a rider connected the Titan, with Harding besides referencing him connected Instagram arsenic a subordinate of the team. 

The Times described him arsenic a maritime adept who was antecedently portion of the French Navy. The 71-year-old was a bonafide Titanic specialist and has traveled to the wreckage 35 times before. Nargeolet served arsenic the manager of RMS Titanic, Inc., a institution that researches, salvages and displays artifacts from the famed ship, per the outlet. 

Alongside chap rider Hamish Harding, helium was a subordinate of The Explorers Club, founded successful 1904.

As Harding noted successful his post, the submersible—named Titan—was a portion of an OceanGate Expeditions circuit that explores the wreckage of the RMS Titanic, which infamously sank successful 1912.

The institution expressed its sympathies to the families of the victims. "These men were existent explorers who shared a chiseled tone of adventure, and a heavy passionateness for exploring and protecting the world's oceans," OceanGate said successful a statement. "Our hearts are with these 5 souls and each subordinate of their families during this tragic time. We grieve the nonaccomplishment of beingness and joyousness they brought to everyone they knew."