Liner (4f/2m).
L/B:
883 × 92.5 (269.1m × 28.2m). Tons:
45,324 grt. Hull:
steel. Comp.:
1st 735, 2nd 674, 3rd 1,026; crew 860. Mach.:
triple expansion/steam turbine, 3 screws; 21 kts. Built:
Harland & Wolff, Belfast, Ireland; 1911.
The biggest ship in the world when launched, Olympic was the first of an ill-fated trio of superliners that included
Britannic and
Titanic. Ordered for White Star Line, then part of J. P. Morgan's International Mercantile Marine, Olympic was intended to be the transatlantic liner par excellence, combining great size and comfort with a moderate turn of speed. Her maiden voyage, under Captain Edward J. Smith, from Southampton to New York via Cherbourg and Queenstown on June 11 took 5 days and 16 hours. That September Olympic collided with HMS Hawke in the Solent when her triple screws caused such massive suction that the cruiser was pulled into the larger ship's stern. Olympic was held to blame, and after repairs at Belfast resumed service on November 30. Following the loss of her sister ship Titanic (then under Olympic's erstwhile Captain Smith), Olympic underwent a massive "safety-first" rebuild including the installation of an inner skin and the installation of enough lifeboats to accommodate all passengers and crew.
Following the start of World War I, on October 27 Olympic attempted to take in tow the battleship HMS Audacious, which had struck a mine off Tory Island, north of Ireland. In September 1915, Olympic was converted for use as a troopship, in which role she performed admirably, even sinking the German U-103 off the Lizard on May 12, 1918. Olympic continued as a troopship for about a year after the armistice before she was withdrawn from military duties in August 1919.
Prior to her return to civilian service, Olympic was converted from coal to oil fuel. In addition to being cleaner and less bulky, oil fuel was less labor-intensive: engine room staff were cut from 246 to 60 men.
On June 25, 1920, she resumed passenger service between Southampton, Cherbourg, and New York. Still the overbearing ship's ill luck continued, and on March 22, 1924, she collided with Furness Lines' Fort St. George near New York, damaging her own sternpost in the process. Her passenger accommodations were reconfigured to suit the changing face of transatlantic travel during the depression, first in 1928 and again in 1931. The superliner's worst collision occurred on the morning of May 16, 1934. Steaming towards New York at high speed in a dense fog, at 1006 she rammed and sank the
Nantucket Lightship. Four of the eleven crew were killed instantly, and three more died of exposure or injuries after their rescue by Olympic.
Later the same year, White Star was absorbed by Cunard Line and in the drive for greater efficiency, Olympic was withdrawn from service after her last voyage from Southampton on March 27, 1935. Laid up at Southampton upon her return, she was scrapped at Jarrow and Inverkeithing.
Martin, Other Titanic. Shipbuilder and Marine Engine-Builder, White Star ... Liners "Olympic" and "Titanic.".
