Dubai: Dubai-based British expat and Chairman of Action Aviation, Captain Hamish Harding, who is among the five people on board a submersible that went missing near Newfoundland in Canada on Monday, had posted a message on Instagram a day earlier, saying he was joining @oceangateexped for the RMS Titanic Mission as a mission specialist on the sub going down to the Titanic.
In the post, he spoke of how proud he was to make the announcement. He also made a reference to the harsh winter conditions, saying, “Due to the worst winter in Newfoundland in 40 years, this mission is likely to be the first and only manned mission to the Titanic in 2023.”
Captain Harding said, “A weather window has just opened up and we are going to attempt a dive tomorrow. We started steaming from St. Johns, Newfoundland, Canada, yesterday and are planning to start dive operations around 4am tomorrow morning. Until then, we have a lot of preparations and briefings to do.”
He said, “The team on the sub has a couple of legendary explorers, some of whom have done over 30 dives to the RMS Titanic since the 1980s including PH Nargeolet. More expedition updates to follow IF the weather holds!”
The next day, Action Aviation said Captain Harding was on board the sub.
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A tweet by the company said, “RMS Titanic Expedition 2023. 4am start this morning on the RMS Titanic Expedition Mission 5 with @oceangateexped. The sub had a successful launch and Hamish is currently diving."
According to media reports, the submersible later went missing after failing to come up at its stipulated site late Sunday night. Canadian and US Coast Guard teams are said to be looking out for the sub to rescue the crew.
Harding, who is also a pilot and adventurer, holds three Guinness World Records, including the longest duration spent at Full Ocean Depth and also the longest distance traversed at Full Ocean Depth. He also led the One More Orbit mission, which achieved the record for the fastest circumnavigation of the Earth via both poles in a Gulfstream G650ER — with a time of 46 hours and 40 minutes.
Last year, Harding was part of a six-member crew on the fifth human flight for Blue Origin’s New Shepard programme. He carried a postcard to space for Blue Origin’s Foundation, Club for the Future. The foundation aimed at inspiring future generations to pursue careers in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).
Back from the sub-orbital space flight, he had told Gulf News, “I have been to the depths of the ocean and out into the space and in a few weeks about to explore the wreck of the Titanic near Greenland. In all my endeavours, it is the UAE which has inspired me. Ever since I set up my home here 20 years ago, I have never ceased to be amazed by the spirit of adventure in this country, which is always striving to achieve the biggest, the fastest. Records in excellence in this country has always helped me push my boundaries.”
Captain Harding had said living in the UAE had helped nurture this spirit. “In the UAE, there are so many things to do. It is easily one of the greatest skydiving locations on earth, has some of the finest scuba diving sites on the east coast. People can go mountain climbing, sky diving, scuba diving, and achieve so many adventurous milestones here. The UAE has been a pioneer in the Space mission in the Middle East and can easily become the second launch site for sub-orbital flights for Blue Origin, after the Mexican desert.”
