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Elon Musk 'Can Stick His Submarine Where It Hurts' - British Rescuer

© AP Photo / Tham Luang Rescue Operation Center via AP)Thailand cave search
Thailand cave search - Sputnik International
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Elon Musk’s idea of using a specially designed mini-sub to salvage children trapped in a flooded cave in Thailand was turned down as the pod proved too big to navigate the miles-long network of waterlogged tunnels.

A British diver who helped rescue a schoolboy football team from a flooded cave in Thailand has dismissed Elon Musk’s offer to use a mini-sub of his own design to help the mission as a “PR stunt.”

Tesla CEO and founder of the Boring Company Elon Musk speaks at a news conference, Thursday, June 14, 2018, in Chicago. The Boring Company has been selected to build a high-speed underground transportation system that it says will whisk passengers from downtown Chicago to O'Hare International Airport in mere minutes - Sputnik International
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Musk to the Rescue: Tesla Boss Steals Media Spotlight Amid Thai Cave Rescue Op
Vernon Unsworth said the six-foot submersible that the SpaceX boss invented and handed to the rescue team “had absolutely no chance of working” because Musk had no idea what the cave passage was like, CNN reported.

Unsworth said that the five foot six long rigid mini-sub, would not be able to navigate the narrow twists and turns of the Tham Luang cave the 12 children and their coach were stranded in.

“He can stick his submarine where it hurts. It wouldn’t have made the first 50 meters into the cave from the dive start point. Just a PR stunt,” he added.

Elon Musk travelled to the Tham Luang caverns earlier this week and presented the “kid sized” vessel, which he said could help free the team marooned inside the flooded tunnels.

The SpaceX and Tesla CEO earlier said that he would try to help with the rescue operation and refashioned part of a Falcon 9 rocket into an underwater escape capsule for the children.

But according to media reports, Musk was “politely” told that the mini-submarine would not be of use.

“Although his technology is good and sophisticated it’s not practical for this mission,” Narongsak Osatanakorn, head of the command center overseeing the rescue, told reporters.

Musk tweeted that the mini-sub was “ready if needed” and would be left at the cave system as it “may be useful in the future.” 

READ MORE: Elon Musk to the Rescue? SpaceX Founder Offers Help to Trapped Thai Soccer Team

The last four team members and their coach were brought out of the Tham Luang cave, near the border with Myanmar, on Tuesday.

The 12 boys, aged 11 to 16, were stranded in the cave on June 23rd before heavy rainfall caused floods that blocked their exit.

They were trapped for 18 days, and one former Thai Navy SEAL died trying to exit the cave after delivering emergency oxygen.

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