Monday, October 14, 2024, a submarine tour from Seabourn Pursuit made a historic discovery off the coast of Alejandro Selkirk Island in Chile’s Juan Fernández Archipelago. The ultra-luxury line’s newest expedition ship discovered the Titania, a German supplier ship that has been lost for 110 years. This is the first sighting of Titania since 1914.
“Experiences like these are a testament to the spirit of expedition, and this discovery is nothing short of historic,” said Robin West, vice president and general manager of expeditions at Seabourn. “Seabourn’s expeditions and particularly our submarine explorations often take our guests to places where no other human has ever explored. I am so incredibly proud of our expedition team for delivering this once-in-a-lifetime and truly unforgettable ‘Seabourn Moment’ to our guests and the local community on Selkirk Island.”
The submarine’s team, led by Pilot Mauricio Fernandez, worked with local fisherman, Gino Perez, to uncover the Titania. Perez had knowledge of the possible location of the ship and was able to help guide the team to that location. With ideal conditions, the team discovered the Titania 95 meters (311 feet) deep, about 4.25 nautical miles off the northwest coast of Selkirk. This island’s harbor master confirmed that no other submarine or diver has visited the site before making this a real discovery.
Fernandez shared the emotion in the submarine as he said, “We were there witnessing history, and our guests had the chance to be a part of this discovery of Titania and the first to see this ship after she sank to the bottom of the ocean 110 years ago. This was truly a special moment of discovery and a perfect example of how Seabourn expeditions continue to provide our guests with incredible Seabourn Moments throughout each journey.”
One guest, Irene Blume, said, “It was almost magical. It really was quite extraordinary.”
Perez, whose family has long been involved with the island’s history, said, “I imagined this ship so many times and now I can see where she is, how she looks like and how she is resting at the bottom. Thank you so much, my father manages this sector of the island, this means a lot to us and our family history. This is extraordinary.”
Occasionally, fishermen have discovered metal fragments they believed belonged to the deliberately sunken ship, but Monday, October 14, 2024, marks the official discovery of Titania by Seabourn.