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According to a court filing by David Lochridge, the director of marine operations at OceanGate, he was terminated in January 2018 after
presenting a scathing quality control report on the vessel to OceanGate’s senior management, including founder and CEO Stockton Rush, who is on board the missing vessel. The report detailed “numerous issues that posed serious safety concerns,” according to the filing.
These included Lochridge’s worry that “visible flaws” in the carbon fiber supplied to OceanGate raised the risk of small flaws expanding into larger tears during “pressure cycling.” These are the huge pressure changes that the submersible would experience as it made its way and from the deep ocean floor. He noted that a previously tested scale model of the hull had “prevalent flaws.”

Carbon fiber composites can be stronger and lighter than steel, making a submersible naturally buoyant. But they can also be prone to sudden failure under stress. The hull that Lochridge was writing about was made by Spencer Composites, the only company to have previously made a carbon fiber hull for a manned submersible.

Following the quality control report and subsequent termination of David Lochridge, concerns regarding the acoustic monitoring system and the carbon fiber hull of OceanGate’s submersible, named the Titan, come to light. Lochridge expressed worry that the system might not detect flaws until the vessel was descending, providing only milliseconds of warning before a catastrophic implosion could occur. Additionally, Lochridge strongly recommended involving a classification agency like the American Bureau of Shipping to inspect and certify the Titan.

During a meeting the day after Lochridge filed his report, he was informed that the manufacturer of the Titan’s forward viewport would only certify it to a depth of 1,300 meters, falling short of the intended depth of 4,000 meters required for the Titanic expedition. OceanGate refused to cover the cost of building a viewport that would meet the intended depth requirement. The filing also alleged the use of hazardous flammable materials within the submersible.

At the end of the meeting, Lochridge was terminated after stating that he would not authorize any manned tests of the Titan without a hull scan. Lochridge filed a lawsuit against OceanGate in response, claiming retaliation for being a whistleblower. The lawsuit was eventually settled in November 2018.

Unfortunately, all five passengers aboard the submersible is dead. Our hearts go to their friends and family.

http://blog.tracelinebranding.com.ng/in-2018-a-whistleblower-raised-safety-concerns-regarding-oceangates-submersible-only-to-be-fired-shortly-after/

Na stubbornness or lack of funding kill the ceo..
The first thing that came to my mind when these happened was....why didn't they attached a long rope or attachment which also serves as extra source of oxygen

He says, he does not believe in safety .. very arrogant man!

ghettochild:
Na stubbornness or lack of funding kill the ceo..
The first thing that came to my mind when these happened was....why didn't they attached a long rope or attachment which also serves as extra source of oxygen