The expedition comes almost a year after five people died when the Titan submersible, built by OceanGate, suffered an implosion.

They included 48 year old businessman Shahzada Dawood and his 19 year old son, Sulaiman from Long Ditton.

Larry Connor, an Ohio real estate investor, wants to rehabilitate the sector’s public image following the deaths.

He has teamed up with Patrick Lahey, co-founder and chief executive of Triton Submarines.

They are due to make the voyage in the $20m Triton 4000/2 Abyssal Explorer.

The 4,000 refers to the depth it can purportedly dive to in metres – about 200m lower than the wreck of the Titanic.