OceanGate Whistleblower Reveals Why the Tragedy Was Avoidable
Netflix is ready to take a hard look at what went wrong with the Titan submersible in 2023 with its June 11 documentary, Titan: The OceanGate Disaster.
The company's whistleblower, David Lochridge, was also the company's director of marine operations and chief submersible pilot until his safety warnings led to his termination.
"There was nothing safe on that vehicle at all, hence why I raised my concerns verbally and also put them down on paper as well," Lockridge told Today on June 6. He revealed that he "raised the concerns" to CEO Stockton Rush in a "quality inspection report."
In the documentary, Lochridge claimed that he was "blown away that they [the company] was willing to play Russian roulette." He was fired in 2018.
"When I raised the concerns and put them down on paper, on my quality inspection report, I was subsequently taken into the boardroom. Over a two-hour, 10-minute period, I was dismissed from the company. So, I was fired, basically," he told Today.
The issue was the carbon fiber design which, even in testing, wasn't withstanding the pressure of a deep dive. Still, Rush reportedly ignored his warnings. After his firing, Lochridge filed a "federal whistleblower complaint and lawsuit to try to get the warning out to the public," per the morning show.
OceanGate continued to accept $250,000 payments from wealthy passengers who wanted to see the remains of the Titanic. On June 18, 2023, five people lost their lives when the Titan imploded: Rush, 61, deep sea explorer Paul-Henri Nargeolet, 77, British tycoon Hamish Harding, 58, Pakistani businessman Shahzada Dawood, 48, and his son, Suleman, 19.
"It could have been stopped, it could have been stopped," summed up Lochridge.
OceanGate ceased all operations in July 2023.OceanGate Whistleblower Reveals Why the Tragedy Was Avoidable first appeared on Men's Journal on Jun 10, 2025
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