The first wrongful death lawsuit (PDF) from the Titan submersible implosion in 2023 is underway, and attorneys have pointed out several factors that could have played a role in the tragic accident. Among these contributing factors is the inexpensive Logitech F710 game controller used as the submersible’s only means of navigating the craft.
The estate of Paul-Henri Louis Emile Nargeolet recently filed the lawsuit against OceanGate, Inc., and others. Other defendants include the estate of deceased OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush. The lawsuit is requesting damages be paid of at least $50 million.
Nargeolet, known worldwide as “Mr. Titanic” because of his 37 previous dives to the ocean liner wreckage, was working with OceanGate on Titan as a crew member. His responsibilities were to "guide other crewmembers and assist with navigation through the Titanic wreckage.”
In the lawsuit, the plaintiffs point out that OceanGate and the other defendants were warned repeatedly by “multiple deep-sea diving experts and engineers, about the potentially fatal consequences of their choices and actions.” These warnings stemmed from serious concerns about the design and construction of the Titan submersible, as well as its operation.
One of the listed design concerns was using the Logitech F710 game controller as the only way to steer the submersible. Rush highlighted this in a 2022 interview with journalist David Pogue, holding up the controller with its 3D-printed thumbstick extensions and boasting, "We run the whole thing with this game controller."
Game controllers are heavily used in military and space flight applications, primarily because newer generations have built up so much muscle memory in using them. However, the decision not to include a secondary, hard-wired means of controlling the Titan was heavily questioned as unsafe before the dive.
Rush, infamously at this point, shrugged off safety concerns. He told Pogue, "At some point, safety just is pure waste." Rush wasn’t just talking about the inclusion of the Logitech F710, but about that and other concerns raised with the Titan’s design. Similarly, the wrongful death suit points out the controller and other factors questioned long before the Titan began its descent to the Titanic wreckage.
These other design and construction choices included building the submersible using carbon fiber instead of titanium, the submersible’s porthole, and the use of materials with differing expansion/compression coefficients. These rounded out the four main areas of criticism Rush and OceanGate ignored.
The lawsuit acknowledges the root cause of the implosion may never be known and does not place sole blame on any one factor. However, the "daisy chain of failures of multiple improperly designed or constructed parts or systems" likely contributed. Now, the plaintiffs seek compensation from OceanGate and the other defendants.
The wrongful death suit claims the defendants "were careless, negligent, grossly negligent, and reckless" because, in part, they failed to provide a safe work environment or "take reasonable precautions during the design, manufacturing, testing, and operation phases" of the Titan.
