The Thetis had been carrying out acceptance trials in Liverpool Bay, but failed to surface on completion of the scheduled three-hour submerged period. A tug had been accompanying the ill-fated vessel and the position of the Thetis was quickly located. Thus there were high hopes of saving the complement including Admiralty specialists, representatives of the builders and her normal crew. After two days of agonized suspense, the nation was shocked to learn that all rescue attempts had failed. The salvage of the vessel was later entrusted to the Liverpool and Glasgow Salvage Association; Critchley's paper describes the salvage operations.