The missing Titanic submersible is operated by a cheap video game controller available for just £42 on Amazon.
Rescuers are engaged in a frantic race against time to save the five people aboard the OceanGate Titan sub that vanished on its way down to the wreckage of the Titanic.
A British billionaire, father and son living in Surrey, veteran French naval commander, and the company’s CEO were all on board when it lost contact off the coast of Canada.
The vessel is a submersible and not a submarine because it cannot dive and ascend on its own - and relies on another vessel, the Canadian research ship Polar Prince, to do this.
But the Polar Prince lost contact with the craft 15 minutes from the wreckage of the Titanic.
An onboard video from the vessel shows that the Titan sub is controlled by a cheap game controller you can buy off of Amazon.
It’s controlled by a Logitech F710 which has been upgraded with some attachments.
Available for £42, it might not be the piece of equipment you’d expect in a dangerous 3,800m dive to the bottom of the sea.
Whilst most of the Amazon reviews for the product are good, some have complained about wireless and connectivity issues.
Last year, talking to CBS one reporter described the Titan sub as having a “MacGyver jerry-riggedness”.
British billionaire Hamish Harding, father and son duo Shahzada Dawood, 48, and Sulaiman Dawood, 19, French Navy veteran Paul-Henry Nargeolet, and OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush - the company behind the submarine expedition - were all on board when the vessel launched around 4am Sunday.
Around 1 hour 45 minutes into their two hour descent communications were lost with the Titan and in the days since rescuers have scrambled to locate them.
Reports have said there’s a limited amount of oxygen supplies on the sub and it could only last until around midday Thursday.
The chief executive of Prince’s Trust International said they are shocked by news one of their advisors is on the missing Titanic submersible.
Will Straw said: “Prince’s Trust International has a longstanding relationship with Shahzada Dawood and his family.
“We are shocked by this awful news, praying for a rescue and sending our thoughts to his family during this deeply challenging time”.
The charity said Mr Dawood has been an advisor to its international arm in “various capacities”, including the global advisory board, with a focus on its work in Pakistan.
Mr Dawood’s father, Hussain Dawood, was a founding patron of Prince’s Trust International, the charity confirmed.
Another passenger, Paul-Henry Nargeolet is reportedly a French navy veteran and “leading authority” on the Titanic.
He’s said to have dove to the wreckage several times, and has previously spoke openly about the risks faced when diving.
British billionaire Hamish Harding is a known adventurer, having been to space on Jeff Bezos' program and to the South Pole - twice.
The final member of the crew was OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush - the company behind the dive which he founded in 2009.
At the age of 19, he became the youngest jet transport rated pilot in the world, and flew all over the world for three years before he became a test pilot in 1984.
But his dreams of becoming a pilot were scuppered by poor eyesight, The Telegraph reported.
