The U.S. government has withdrawn its legal challenge against RMS Titanic Inc., the company holding salvage rights to the Titanic wreck, after the firm indicated it has no immediate plans for expeditions that might violate federal law.
The government’s withdrawal, filed Friday in a federal admiralty court in Norfolk, Virginia, marks the end of its second legal confrontation with RMST in five years. The latest challenge began in 2023 when RMST planned to capture images inside the ship’s hull and retrieve items from the debris field, including potential artifacts from the radio room.
These plans faced opposition from the U.S. government, which argued that such activities would violate a 2017 federal law and an agreement with Great Britain protecting the site as a memorial to the 1,500-plus lives lost in the 1912 disaster. RMST subsequently modified its plans to only capture external images, particularly after losing its director of underwater research, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, in the tragic Titan submersible incident.
While RMST successfully conducted an expedition capturing detailed external images in September 2023, the company informed the court in December that it has no plans for a 2025 expedition and is still evaluating the implications of future salvage operations. The U.S. government maintains the right to file new legal challenges should future circumstances warrant.
RMST has served as the court-recognized steward of Titanic artifacts since 1994, recovering thousands of items that have been viewed by millions through public exhibitions. Their last artifact recovery expedition occurred in 2010, before the implementation of current federal laws and international agreements governing the site.
The recent legal withdrawal follows a similar pattern to a 2020 confrontation when RMST sought to recover the Titanic’s radio equipment. Although initially approved by U.S. District Judge Rebecca Beach Smith, who oversees Titanic salvage matters, the plan was challenged by the government and ultimately delayed indefinitely due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The situation has taken on greater urgency as experts note the Titanic’s accelerating deterioration on the North Atlantic seabed, potentially limiting future exploration opportunities.
Read more: Firm not planning to salvage more Titanic artifacts, snuffing out legal fight
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