Titanic: Sinking the Myths

Page 2 of 6

• 1. 'Practically unsinkable'
• 2. Achilles heel
• 3. Speed
• 4. Allegations of cowardice
• 5. Captain Smith
• 6. Find out more
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Achilles heel

Building ships this large led to inevitable compromises. Titanic, identical in almost every respect to her sister, adopted tried and trusted methods for her design and construction. No risks were taken with the choice of engines which were enlarged versions of the propulsion system first used experimentally in Laurentic, another White Star liner, in 1909. The triple screw vessel had proved that two expansion engines feeding exhaust steam into a low pressure turbine were more economical than vessels using expansion engines or turbines alone.

'...little thought was given to how a ship, 852 feet in length, might...avoid collision with an iceberg.'

Titanic's hull and upper works were also enlarged versions of designs refined over several decades. Her stern, with its high graceful counter and long thin rudder, was an exact copy of an 18th-century sailing ship, wrought in steel, a perfect example of the lack of technical development. Compared with the rudder design of the Cunarders, Titanic's was a fraction of the size. No account was made for advances in scale and little thought was given to how a ship, 852 feet in length, might turn in an emergency or avoid collision with an iceberg. This was Titanic's Achilles heel.

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Published: 2002-04-01