 Belfast, 6 March 1912: Titanic (right) moved out of the drydock to allow Olympic (left) to replace a damaged propeller blade
| |
| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Builders | Harland and Wolff, Belfast |
| Operators | White Star Line; Cunard-White Star Line[1] |
| Preceded by | Athenic class |
| Built | 1908–1914 |
| In service | 1911–1935 |
| Planned | 3 |
| Completed | 3 |
| Lost | 2 |
| Retired | 1 |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Ocean liner |
| Tonnage | 45,000 GRT - 48,000 GRT |
| Displacement | 52,310 tons |
| Length | 882 ft 9 in (269.1 m) overall |
| Beam | 92 ft 6 in (28.19 m)[1] (Olympic & Titanic), 94 ft (28.7 m) (Britannic) |
| Height | 205 ft (62 m) from keel to top of masts |
| Draught | 34 ft 7 in (10.54 m)[1] |
| Depth | 64 ft 9 in (20 m) from keel to side of C-deck |
| Decks | 9 |
| Installed power | 24 double-ended and 5 single-ended 15 bar Scotch marine boilers, tested to 30 bar. Two 4-cylinder reciprocating engines for the two outboard wing propellers. One low-pressure turbine for center propeller. Together 50,000 HP nominal, 59,000 max.[2][3][4] |
| Propulsion | Two bronze 3-blade wing propellers. One bronze 4-blade centre propeller for Olympic & Britannic. One bronze 3-blade centre propeller for Titanic |
| Speed | 21 kn (39 km/h; 24 mph); 23 kn (43 km/h; 26 mph) max |
| Capacity | 3,327 passengers, officers, and crew[1] |
| Crew | 892 crew members |
The Olympic-class ocean liners were a trio of British ocean liners built by the Harland & Wolff shipyard for the White Star Line during the early 20th century, named Olympic (1911), Titanic (1912) and Britannic (1914). All three were designated to be the largest as well as most luxurious liners of the era, devised to provide White Star an advantage as regards to size and luxury in the transatlantic passenger trade.
Whilst Olympic, the primary vessel, was in service for 24 years before being retired for scrap in 1935, her sisters would not witness similar success: Titanic struck an iceberg and sank on her maiden voyage and Britannic was lost whilst serving as a hospital ship during the First World War after hitting a mine off Kea in the Aegean Sea before entering service.
Although two of the vessels did not achieve successful enough legacies, they are amongst the most famous ocean liners ever built; Both Olympic and Titanic enjoyed the distinction of being the largest ships in the world. Olympic was the largest British-built ship in the world for over 20 years until the commissioning of Queen Mary in 1936. Titanic's story has been adapted into many books, films, and television programs and Britannic was the inspiration of a film of the same name in 2000.
- ^ a b c d Cite error: The named reference
Maritimequestwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ "Mark Chirnside's Reception Room: Olympic, Titanic & Britannic: Olympic Interview, January 2005". Markchirnside.co.uk. Retrieved 16 July 2009.
- ^ "Titanic's Prime Mover – An Examination of Propulsion and Power". Titanicology. Archived from the original on 6 January 2021. Retrieved 30 October 2013.
- ^ "Boiler - Scotch". Archived from the original on 2 November 2013. Retrieved 30 October 2013.