Former naval aviator weighs in on the missing Titanic submersible

As time runs short, the Canadian military and U.S. Coast Guard teams have ramped up the desperate North Atlantic search for the missing submersible with five people on board.

At least eight more rescue ships are joining the international effort to find the submersible carrying five people to explore the Titanic wreck.

”This is an incredibly complex search operation requiring surface and subsurface elements, and our unified approach is critical,” said Capt. Jamie Frederick from the First Coast Guard District.

WINK News got some more insight into what it takes for a search and rescue when time is of the essence.

WINK talked with Rich Kolko, a retired U.S. Navy aviator who has participated in searches like this in the past. He says that the sonar buoys are the best option to pinpoint the sub, and they will use a lot of them.

“At this point, this is the best they can do. Literally, they will put hundreds if not thousands of sonar buoys to try and pick up the submarine,” Kolko said.

The 22-foot carbon fiber vessel set out on Sunday for the wreckage of the Titanic on the ocean floor when the craft lost contact with its support ship.

Rescuers have heard underwater sounds described as ”banging noises” detected for a second day.

“We don’t know what they are, to be frank with you,” Frederick said. “The good news is we’re searching in the area where the noises were detected.”

According to some estimates, oxygen aboard the submersible could run out as early as Thursday morning.

With the clock ticking, Kolko tells WINK News, so many different agencies involved rescue teams also have to be careful not to get in each other’s way.

“It can be very dangerous, but that is exactly what these aviators are trained to do,” Kolko said.

A giant task with no time to spare. Authorities expanded the search to twice the size of the state of Connecticut in waters 2.5 miles deep.