Rescue teams have been waiting since MONDAY for approval from “incompetent” US Coast Guard to help search

Precious time may have been lost in the Titan submarine rescue mission after the US Coast Guard was slow to authorize private groups with state-of-the-art equipment to assist in the search, it is alleged.

A firm that has a vehicle capable of reaching a depth of 20,000 feet (20,000 feet) was reported to have applied as early as Monday to participate in the search for the submarine, with approval reportedly delayed until today.

The submarine, operated by OceanGate Expeditions, has been missing since Sunday with five on board, including British billionaire Hamish Harding, OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush, a French Navy veteran and abbusinessman and his son.

The USGC has been frantically searching for it along with British and French teams, but it is claimed that the Coast Guard only issued an appeal for help from private groups last night.

An expert close to the rescue mission denounced what they called “institutional arrogance, politics and incompetence” on the part of the mission’s leadership for not quickly approving teams.

They said they believe the USGC has now approved private teams to help, but asked ‘will it be on time?’ – as the oxygen on board the small craft is rapidly running out.

Approval was slow, it was claimed, despite everyone in the search and rescue community “offering to do what they could” once news of the missing submarine broke.

As the search for the missing Titan submarine becomes increasingly desperate, some of the world’s most advanced underwater search equipment has already been deployed to scour the depths of the Atlantic Ocean.

Two submersibles capable of descending 20,000 feet below the ocean’s surface are currently leading the underwater search and more are on the way, Coast Guard chiefs said yesterday.

The vehicles are assisted by a fleet of specialized ships that also contain tools that could lift Titan from the seabed – if found.

As time runs out, more equipment is expected to arrive tomorrow morning, including more remotely operated vehicles (ROV) to detect sound as planes continue to scan the ocean from above.

The hope of finding the submarine rests on the Victor 6000, which can reach a depth of 20,000 feet and is rushed to the search area.

Five people are on board, including British billionaire adventurer Hamish Harding

Among those on board are Shahzada Dawood, his son Suleman, 19 (pictured together)

French Navy veteran PH Nargeolet (left) is believed to be taking part in the expedition, along with Stockton Rush (right), CEO of the OceanGate Expedition

The Victor 6000 ROV may be able to attach a cable to the submarine before it is towed to the surface by the Flyaway Deep Ocean Salvage System, a specialized winch that in 2021 succeeded in rescuing a helicopter from 19,075 feet deep.

The ROV is on board the French-flagged vessel Atalante, which is owned by the Ifremer.

A second ROV capable of diving to 19,000 feet, the Odysseus 6K, is owned by US-based Pelagic Research Services (PRS).

On Wednesday, PRS said it sent the vehicle to assist. An airport official told a U.S. news website that the vehicle landed in Newfoundland by plane, but it’s not clear if it will reach the rescue site in time.

The Victor 6000 ROV is on board the French-flagged ship Atalante, which is owned by the ocean research institute Ifremer and is currently in the Northwest Atlantic

Timeline (British Summer Time) of the search for the Ocean Gate submarine, if Titan has lost power the crew will be in complete darkness with temperatures of 3C

A third ROV capable of reaching the required depth, the CURV-21, has not been dispatched by its owners, the US Navy.

The search area for Titan has now expanded to about 14,000 square miles — twice the size of the state of Connecticut.

The USCG has been contacted for comment.