Titanic tourist sub goes MISSING sparking frantic search as vessel used for £200k trips to view wreck vanishes
A SUBMARINE used to take tourists to see the wreckage of the Titanic has vanished.
Rescue crews are frantically searching the Atlantic Ocean after the vessel disappeared.
It is unclear how many people – if any – were on board and which company is responsible for it, reports the BBC.
Boston Coastguard confirmed a search operation is under way.
The Titanic sank on its maiden voyage to New York on April 14, 1912, after hitting an iceberg.
More than 1,500 of the 2,200 passengers and crew onboard were killed, and many died within minutes of being thrown into the -2C waters.
The wreckage of the doomed ship sits 12,400 feet beneath sea level in dark and icy waters in the North Atlantic Ocean.
Occasionally, small subs are booked by paying tourists to visit the submerged vessel, which is underwater around 600km off the coast of Newfoundland, Canada.
It’s understood trips can cost more than £90,000 to see the ruins of the boat.
One of the only companies that offers tours is OceanGate Expeditions, with tickets costing up to £195,000.
Its website currently lists that an expedition is under way.
The decaying wreck of the 822ft liner was first discovered in 1985 but due to its depth and strong currents even the best underwater cameras have only offered a small snapshot into its colossal remains.
Its bow and the stern that broke apart during the sinking lie more than 2,600ft apart and are surrounded by an unending field of exposed debris.
But last month, the ship’s haunting wreck was revealed as never before in stunningly detailed 3D scans on the ocean floor.
Scientists hope the high-resolution digital images – the clearest view ever of the world’s most famous shipwreck – could shed new light on the disaster.
The British luxury passenger liner took under three years to construct, costing around £1.5million – equating to about £170million today.
Thousands of workers were involved in the project, with some 14,000 men employed during the peak of construction.
The frame was fully formed in just over a year, with the shell plating finished shortly afterwards.
The steamship was released from its dry dock in 1911 and work on the interior began.
Just eight days before its maiden voyage, it was declared seaworthy.
The Sun has approached OceanGate for comment.