The decision could impact a looming court battle between the company and the U.S. government, which has been trying to stop the 2024 mission. U.S. attorneys have said the firm’s original plans to enter the ship’s hull would violate a federal law that treats the wreck as a gravesite.
Paul-Henri Nargeolet was the director of underwater research for RMS Titanic, Inc, the Georgia-based firm that recovers and exhibits Titanic artifacts. Nargeolet was lending his expertise to a separate company, OceanGate, when he and four others died on the Titan’s final dive near the Titanic in June.
Before the tragic dive, RMST planned to take images inside and outside of the wreck. The firm also wanted to retrieve items from the debris field as well as freestanding objects within the sunken ocean liner.
It’s a shame for any of them to die so sadly, but this plus what I read about Nargeolet when the Titan implosion was all over the news have me thinking pretty unfavorably about the guy. He was a Titanic expert and seemed like the most respectful of the bunch: he seemingly wasn’t there just for adventure or obligation.
But like, this just makes it seem like he just knew how to speak respectfully while grave robbing and profiting off the Titanic tragedy.