These 3 submersibles could have met same fate as OceanGate Titan. Here's what saved them

The implosion of the Titan submersible during an expedition to the site of the world's most famous shipwreck has raised multiple concerns about its safety measures. However, it is not the first vessel that could have met with the same fate as the one owned by OceanGate Expeditions.

The Titanic wreckage, discovered 75 years after it sank, has been witnessed by less than 250 people due to the dangers involved in the nearly 3,700 metres-deep dive.

Read: OceanGate CEO raised control issues with Titan sub during his earlier mission

According to a report by Canada news channel CBC, the OceanGate sub was the only vessel that held no certification from a regulatory body, unlike the nine other submersibles in the world that can dive to depths of 4,000 metres or more. Warnings from industry experts and its senior employee about the sub’s lack of safety were not paid heed to.

A look at three earlier Titanic expeditions to the Titanic that had a close shave with death:

Canadian undersea physician Dr. Joe MacInnis, who had experience in undertaking dives to the site of the wreckage, led an expedition in 1991. Apart from analysing biological and geological studies, the trip was also for the purpose of capturing footage of the sunken ship on Imax film.

Of the 17 dives by two Russian submersibles, the last one hit a snag as the sub got caught in a tangle of wires. The crew managed to manoeuvre itself from the situation after the second sub was called in for assistance.

Read: 'Sounded bad on its face’: James Cameron points out flaws in Titan submersible

Ironically, James Cameron, the director of ‘Titanic’, also had a near-death experience at the shipwreck site. Cameron, who has undertaken 33 dives to the spot, had to face an unexpected sandstorm on the ocean floor during his third dive in 1995 with submersible pilot Dr. Anatoly Sagalevich.

“Anatoly said, 'Oh, no,' something you never want to hear a pilot say...” Cameron recalls in his 2009 biography 'The Futurist'.

The crew was almost out of batteries and the strong currents had sucked out almost all the power supply. Despite aborting the mission, the sub sank back to the floor. After half an hour of complete darkness and near-freezing temperatures, it took two more tries before they could break the surface and move away from the wreck five hours later.

Read: Twitter finds chilling resemblance between Titan mishap and this film scene

Despite a fear of water, Michael Guillen decided to take up the opportunity to visit the Titanic wreck in 2000, hoping to become the first reporter in 88 years to do so. However, his sub suddenly sped up while crossing the debris field between the ship's front section and the stern as they got caught in an unpredictable current.

Slamming into the Titanic's propeller, Guillen recounted in his book 'Believing is Seeing' that he felt the shock of the collision. “Shards of reddish, rusty debris showered down on our submersible, obscuring my view through the porthole," he wrote. After an hour spent in deathly silence only interrupted by submersible pilot Viktor Nischeta’s efforts to save the sub, the vessel began rising again.

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