‘Lot of Red Flags’: Billionaire Father-Son Duo Reveals Reason for Not Going on Doomed Sub

They felt something was wrong about the submarine even as the CEO insisted it was ‘safer than crossing the street’

The OceanGate logo is pictured on a trailer at the Port of Everett Boat Yard in Everett, Washington, on June 20, 2023. Jason Redmond/AFP via Getty Images

Jay Bloom, a billionaire real estate developer from Las Vegas, revealed recently that he and his son Sean were offered seats in the Titan submarine but had turned down the proposal due to conspicuous safety concerns.

Sean was worried about the Titan sub and talked with his dad about it, he said in a June 23 interview with CNN. He reportedly saw a video of Stockton Rush, the CEO of OceanGate Expeditions who led the trip, walking through the Titan. “I saw a lot of red flags. It was only meant for five people. I just did not think that it can survive going that low into the ocean … Ultimately I ended up warning my dad about it, and he ended up agreeing with me.”

According to a June 22 Facebook post by Bloom, Rush had contacted Bloom with the offer for a trip in May, which was later postponed to the fateful June 18 expedition that ended in tragedy. At the time, Bloom expressed safety concerns about the dive.

However, Stockton insisted that “while there’s obviously risk, it’s way safer than flying in a helicopter or even scuba diving. There hasn’t even been an injury in 35 years in non-military subs.

On March 1, Bloom met Stockton for the last time in person, during which time he once again raised safety concerns. Stockton assured him the dive would be “safer than crossing the street.”

However, Bloom informed Stockton that he and his son could not join him due to scheduling conflicts. As a result, the seats went to Shahzada Dawood and his 19-year-old son Suleman Dawood.

Apprehensions About the Experimental Sub

The Titan sub went missing on June 18 after it dived to visit the Titanic wreckage in the North Atlantic Ocean. It was later revealed that the submarine suffered a “catastrophic implosion” that killed all five onboard, including Stockton Rush.

In a June 20 Facebook post, Bloom said that if he had accepted Rush’s offer, “I would’ve been one of the five onboard right now.”

Bloom told CNN that when Rush visited him in March, the OceanGate CEO had flown in on a two-seater experimental plane that he had built. This deepened Bloom’s apprehensions about going for a dive in the sub.

“I started to think about it. He’s coming in on a two-seater experimental plane to pitch me to go on a five-seater experimental sub that he has built, down to the ocean floor to see the Titanic,” Bloom said.

“He has a different risk appetite than I do … I’m a pilot. I have my helicopter pilot’s license. I would not get into an experimental aircraft,” he said.

Safety Problems

Several experts have raised the Titan sub’s safety issues in the past. In 2018, David Lochridge, who used to be the company’s Director of Marine Operations, had warned about such issues.

According to U.S. court documents, Lochridge identified “numerous issues that posed serious safety concerns.” He “primarily expressed concern regarding the lack of non-destructive testing performed on the hull of the Titan.”

Lochridge insisted that OceanGate conduct nondestructive testing of the experimental hull and hire an agency like the American Bureau of Shipping to inspect and certify the Titan submersible. However, OceanGate did not heed his suggestion and ended up firing him.

In March 2018, the Marine Technology Society sent a letter (pdf) to OceanGate, warning about issues with the submarine. “This letter is sent on behalf of our industry members who have collectively expressed unanimous concern regarding the development of TITAN and the planned Titanic Expedition.”

“Our apprehension is that the current experimental approach adopted by OceanGate could result in negative outcomes (from minor to catastrophic) that would have serious consequences for everyone in the industry,” the letter had warned.