Father and son Jay and Sean were supposed to be on the Titanic sub. They pulled out last-minute.

Like the rest of the world, Jay and Sean Bloom spent the last week watching the unfolding Titanic submersible tragedy.

They saw photos of those missing on the news and held hope for their survival.

But unlike the rest of the world, the father and son were supposed to be on the submersible travelling to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean to view the Titanic wreck. 

However, a last-minute decision saw them give up their seats. 

"The past week has been quite surreal for us," Jay, a Las Vegas investor, told The Sunday Project. 

"It's very strange when my son and I were supposed to have been on that trip and elected not to go."

Jay was initially excited to take his 20-year-old son, Sean, an "enormous" Titanic fan, on the expedition to the 1912 wreck, located off the coast of Canada. 

But safety concerns saw them pull out and "substituted by another father and son".

"The son [was] about the same age as my son, and it’s been a rollercoaster," said Jay. 

"I would see pictures of these people, and see pictures of the father and the son, and all I could think of was but for the grace of God, there go me and my son. 

"That would be my picture, and our picture, instead of the picture I’m looking at, so [it's been] a very harrowing, very haunting experience."

19-year-old Suleman Dawood (left) and his father Shahzada (right) were among those on board the sub. Image: AAP/Facebook.

Speaking to The Sunday Project, Jay explained it was his son who first became hesitant about the trip. 

"He was excited initially... and then he spoke to his close friend who raised all kinds of doomsday scenarios... and it put some fear into him."

When Sean later researched the sub, he became 'concerned' about the vessel's carbon fibre hull.

"This was the first time a sub has had a carbon fibre hull. It’s untested. This was an experimental vehicle even though it was sold to us as being extremely safe," said Jay.

"He was very concerned it wasn’t (safe) and the more I researched it the more concerned I became as well."

Jay Bloom and his son Sean narrowly avoided a catastrophic family tragedy after they made a last-minute decision to turn down seats on the doomed Titanic submersible. Jay explains how they raised safety concerns to the CEO, Stockton Rush. pic.twitter.com/eUBUdj0l31

— The Project (@theprojecttv) June 25, 2023

Jay was also worried when his son found a video of Stockton Rush, the CEO of OceanGate, which operated the sub, talking about the vessel's controls. 

"The controls were basically a consumer video game controller, and that was it, that’s what controlled the sub – an Xbox controller, Logitech controller. 

"I became very concerned at that point that this company was using consumer-grade electronics for a commercial application in probably the most hostile environment on the planet."

Jay said Rush, who was among those who died in the tragedy, flew out to Las Vegas before the expedition to attempt to alleviate his fears. But he wasn't convinced. 

"The fact that he was coming to see me in a two-seater experimental aircraft that he had built, to pitch me on going on a five-seater experimental sub to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean to view the Titanic wreckage... The fact that he flew an experimental aircraft to come see me, that threw me," said Jay. 

"And he viewed the safety concerns that I raised as more of a difference of opinion than a factual problem... I thought he was being somewhat cavalier about real risk."

In a post on Facebook last week, Jay shared screenshots of text message exchanges with Rush, where he attempted to quell Sean's concerns about being attacked by marine life and offered the father and son a last-minute price of $US150,000 per person, down from $US250,000. 

"Have space on mission 1 (May 11-19) and 2 (May 20-28) last-minute price is $150K pp," Rush wrote in one of the messages. 

In the post, Jay said when he expressed safety concerns to Rush, he was told, "There hasn’t been even an injury in 35 years in non-military subs."

"I am sure he really believed what he was saying. But he was very wrong," Jay added.

"He passionately believed in what he was doing. He was absolutely convinced that it was safer than crossing the street."

Jay concluded the post writing, "One last time... RIP Stockton and crew."

"Tomorrow is never promised. Make the most of today."

Feature Image: Facebook@jay.l.bloom/AAP.