'Real game-changers': West Cork diver launches Ireland's first commercial submarines
Testing of Ireland's first commercial submarines has been ongoing off Cape Clear since April.
As one of Ireland’s most experienced divers, he has spent much of his life underwater — now he is going deeper by launching the country’s first commercial submarines.
West Cork-based John Kearney, who has been involved in some of the most complex search and recovery dive operations off the Irish coast, says his new submersibles will be a game-changer in our ability to explore and understand our marine world, but also for search, rescue, recovery and survey operations.
He and his team, which includes experienced ex-navy and military divers, have been conducting sea trials off the south-west coast in recent months, performing up to 100 dives in the waters off Cape Clear island to demonstrate the sub’s capabilities and reliability.
But now he has officially unveiled the vessels, with the first vessel ready for deployment, and the second due to follow soon.
“Our main focus will be maritime research and recovery,” Mr Kearney said.
“They will be real game-changers for scientific and environmental research as well as survey and recovery operations.
“Recently, a Stone Age wall was discovered off Germany's Baltic coast that may be the oldest known megastructure built by humans in Europe.
“So who knows what our marine archaeologists and historians might find around coastlines across the globe.”
The subs were built by the Dutch company U-Boat Worx and have been certified by Germany-based DNV, the world's leading classification society, which requires each individual submersible to meet stringent and extensive rules and regulations.
Powered by electric motors, the A-EX1 vessel, the company’s NEMO 2 model, is a compact submersible that can carry two people — one pilot and a passenger. It can dive for up to eight hours to a depth of 100m — about 330ft — and features a groundbreaking pressure hull design which provides a virtually unimpeded view.
It also has enough air, food, and water to sustain crew life on board for up to five days in the event of a seabed emergency.
The A-EX2 sub is the larger Super Yacht Sub 3 model, which can accommodate three people — one pilot and two passengers.
It can dive for up to 12 hours, also to a depth of 300m, about 1,000ft. It has similar safety features.
Both vessels have been customised to include an advanced forward-looking imaging sonar system, an externally mounted 4K camera specially adapted for underwater recording, as well as an extensive lighting rig to help explore the dark depths.
As investigations continue into the OceanGate Titan sub disaster in June 2023, when the sub imploded at about 3,300m en route to the wreckage of the Titanic, killing all five people on board, Mr Kearney said his subs would operate at much shallower depths.
“But safety is and must always be the top priority,” he said.
Certification includes passing a range of rigorous tests and trials, from design to final delivery, overseen by independent surveyors, and the sub crews must follow rigorous pre- and post-dive checks similar to the procedures followed by airline pilots.
“It’s essential that our team of pilots and support personnel are fully up to speed on all aspects of operations to ensure the continued success of our missions,” Mr Kearney said.
Both vessels have been acquired by Muiri Carraige Aonair Teoranta (MCAT), a West Cork company headed by Mr Kearney, who has christened them the Atlantis Explorer 1 (A-EXI) and the Atlantis Explorer 2 (A-EX2).
Initial funding for the project has come from both private investors as well as from the Department of the Marine.
Mr Kearney said they also hope to use the submarines to explore historical shipwrecks that litter the seabed and uncover and identify their condition and precise location.
It is estimated there are more than 18,000 known and potential shipwrecks in Irish waters alone, including inshore waterways.
“Our aim is to start with a baseline survey of historical and many more unknown shipwrecks in various waters and to put a stop to treasure hunters that have plundered our heritage unhindered for so long,” he said.
“They have caused immeasurable damage to historical wrecks and artifacts, sometimes destroying them almost entirely by using heavy breaking equipment.
“Once wrecks have been located and identified by our submarines, they will be subject to a non-destructive examination, and their condition recorded, thereby providing vital evidence to assist in any prosecution of parties engaged in theft from historical wrecks and sites.”
The two subs, and their support vessel, will also be available for hire to marine companies and research institutions that require specific data from the ocean depths or the ocean floor, and they will be made available for use in underwater surveying and recovery missions worldwide.
“We would also be more than happy to make our submarines and expertise available to coast guards, law enforcement agencies, and naval services if they think it will assist them in any way, especially in the fight against drug smugglers,” Mr Kearney said.
He is also the driving force behind plans to develop a historical marine project, Fastnet Maritime Museum, in Baltimore, which he hopes will use including immersive 3D exhibitions showcasing our shipwrecks and our incredibly rich and varied marine life.
“We also plan to make use of the underwater footage we record to create a series of programmes for the public to make them more aware of the unbelievable world within our oceans and seas," he said.
“My whole life has revolved around the sea, and I'm passionately interested in increasing the number of people who care about our oceans and our heritage."
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