“For many of us who traveled on the Titan submersible, it was worth the risk to see the majestic sinking of the Titanic”

Plunging 4,000 meters into the depths of the ocean to see the remains of the Titanic with your own eyes is something that very few have done.

The possibility of doing it titan submersible -who disappeared on Sunday with 5 people on board- seduced the Mexican youtuber and actor two years ago allan estradapopular for his travel channel “Alan around the world”.

LOOK: A submersible that takes tourists and experts to visit the remains of the Titanic disappears with 5 people on board

“All the people who made that expedition were fully aware of the risks that we were drinking,” Estrada tells BBC Mundo.

“But I never felt unsafe. I was fully aware of the risks and I knew that if something happened, if there was a failure in those depths and the submersible imploded, we probably wouldn’t even notice.”

He found out about these excursions during the pandemic, when he was thinking of ways to push his YouTube channel “to other limits.”

He did his research, looked for sponsors to pay what was then worth $125,000 – the price per passenger this year was double – and signed up in early 2021.

His first attempt in July 2021 was unsuccessful. She descended on the Titan with three other passengers and the pilot Stockton RushPresident of the company Ocean Gatecreator of this submersible, but due to technical problems they had to return to the surface shortly after the journey began.

A year later he sailed with another crew and passengers, this time with success.

But before achieving it, he had to sign a document in which he was responsible for the dangers involved in making a trip in an experimental ship such as the Titan submersible at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean.

“You read carefully all the things that could happen and well, you never know, but also getting on a plane is a risk. It sounds cliché, but life is a risk. And, in the end, for many of us who did it, it was worth it in exchange for being able to see this majestic sinking“, says Estrada.

“It is something very spectacular for many reasons. Knowing that so few people have been at those depths, in front of that shipwreck, being the most famous on the planet, is something very special. Having in front of you an image that you have seen so many times in documentaries and movies is very impressive,” he says.

What it’s like to ride the Titan submersible

For Alan Estrada, the beginning of the journey in the submersible feels like you are at the launch of a rocket, but the trip itself is not a very particular experience.

“It’s not very special, let’s say. You’re inside a capsule, which is something unthinkable for anyone who has claustrophobia, but nothing more. What is something very impressive is the fact of being in front of that shipwreck,” he says.

In the ship made of carbon fiber and titanium there is not much space to move – it measures 2.8 meters wide by 2.5 meters high and 6.7 meters deep – and it has oxygen for 5 people for 96 hours.

The trip in the Titan submersible is designed to last eight hours, although it has oxygen for four days. (AMERICAN PHOTO ARCHIVE/ALAMY/PA WIRE).

The journey is divided into two hours to go down 4,000 meters, up to four hours in the depths of the ocean to first find the Titanic and then explore it, and two hours to float out.

While inside the submersible, Estrada was able to control it, something that is done with a wireless video game controller.

“There is only backwards, forwards, up and down, and you can turn. It is very easy to handle. The complex thing is the communication and navigation systems to be able to reach the remains of the Titanic in that darkness,” he says.

On his journey, he even watched part of a movie while waiting to get to the historic ocean liner, as shown in one of his videos.

The submersible cannot be opened from the inside; it can only be opened by specialized equipment from the outside. That is why, in the hypothetical case that the ship was able to reach the surface, the passengers would not be able to get out of it without outside help.

“There’s nothing else they can do. Just wait to be rescued. And I guess they’ll be constantly trying to get communication back,” Estrada says.

Estrada says that he knows that these types of trips are “quite controversial” because of the amount of money spent by those who go sightseeing to the bottom of the sea.

“Some people see the fact of taking tourists as something very superficial, like a toy for the rich, but I also believe, and I saw it with the scientists I met, that in this way they can continue exploring the depths of the ocean, because it is something very expensive,” he says.

The famous youtuber hopes that rescuers can find the Titan’s passengers alive, and that “in the end this is just a dark chapter from which much can be learned to continue exploring.”

Source: Elcomercio