Legal Piracy, Titan Salvage, the Sinking Cougar Ace, and the High Seas

Quote, “The insurers of a disabled ship with valuable cargo will offer from 10 to 70 percent of the value of the ship and its cargo to anyone who can save it. If the salvage effort fails, they don’t pay a dime.”

I devoured this Wired Magazine article about a deep-sea cargo transport ship called the Cougar Ace and Titan Salvage, one of a handful of companies worldwide who specialize in rescuing/righting sinking ships. 

Quote, “They’re a motley mix: American, British, Swedish, Panamanian. Each has a specialty — deep-sea diving, computer modeling, underwater welding, big-engine repair. And then there’s [Rich] Habib… [who] holds an unlimited master’s license, which means he’s one of the select few who are qualified to pilot ships of any size, anywhere in the world [and] the guy who regularly helicopters onto the deck of a sinking ship, greets whatever crew is left, and takes command of the stricken vessel.”

It’s like something out of a summer blockbuster, only a tad more deadly serious and a tad less exciting. But it’s fascinating nonetheless.