Sometimes it takes a hundred years for the real truth to come out.
From Yahoo news:
Titanic sunk by steering mistake, author says
Wed Sep 22, 11:50 am ET
LONDON (Reuters) – The Titanic hit an iceberg in 1912 because of a basic steering error, and only sank as fast as it did because an official persuaded the captain to continue sailing, an author said in an interview published on Wednesday.
Louise Patten, a writer and granddaughter of Titanic second officer Charles Lightoller, said the truth about what happened nearly 100 years ago had been hidden for fear of tarnishing the reputation of her grandfather, who later became a war hero.
Lightoller, the most senior officer to have survived the disaster, covered up the error in two inquiries on both sides of the Atlantic because he was worried it would bankrupt the ill-fated liner's owners and put his colleagues out of a job.
"They could easily have avoided the iceberg if it wasn't for the blunder," Patten told the Daily Telegraph.
"Instead of steering Titanic safely round to the left of the iceberg, once it had been spotted dead ahead, the steersman, Robert Hitchins, had panicked and turned it the wrong way."
Patten, who made the revelations to coincide with the publication of her new novel "Good as Gold" into which her account of events are woven, said that the conversion from sail ships to steam meant there were two different steering systems.
Crucially, one system meant turning the wheel one way and the other in completely the opposite direction.
Once the mistake had been made, Patten added, "they only had four minutes to change course and by the time (first officer William) Murdoch spotted Hitchins' mistake and then tried to rectify it, it was too late."
Patten's grandfather was not on watch at the time of the collision, but he was present at a final meeting of the ship's officers before the Titanic went down.
There he heard not only about the fatal mistake but also the fact that J. Bruce Ismay, chairman of Titanic's owner the White Star Line persuaded the captain to continue sailing, sinking the ship hours faster than would otherwise have happened.
"If Titanic had stood still, she would have survived at least until the rescue ship came and no one need have died," Patten said.
The RMS Titanic was the world's biggest passenger liner when it left Southampton, England, for New York on its maiden voyage on April 10, 1912. Four days into the trip, the ship hit an iceberg and sank, taking more than 1,500 passengers with it.
My brain is like an Internet browser; 12 tabs are open and 5 of them are not responding, there's a GIF playing in an endless loop,... and where is that annoying music coming from?
I suppose next it will be the demand for an apology from the successors of the ships owners
Quickly followed by lawyers demanding compensation for the families of the deceased
I'm sure the Hitchins family will be delighted with this revelation! In all honesty, what the hell good does this do? I assume zero proof of events of course..... simple hearsay.
"Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things" - Yma o Hyd.
The helmsman could have very well steered the wrong way, but it is utter crap to say that the steering was arse about, and a carry over from sailing ships!
The Irish are known for their sense of humour, but I am sure Harland & Wolff Shipyard in Belfast knew which way to connect up the steering.
On a yacht with just a tiller arm connected to the rudder, yes, it is opposite. But ocean going sailing ships of the era were too big to have that arrangement.
yeah right..... "non-facts pulled out me arse" this says to me
nothing to do with the Titanic steered like a piggin oil tanker, and the men on watch werent issued with binoculars, it was nighttime, the Cap had ordered the boat at full steam ahead to hit its deadline, and the radio op had gone off shift so didnt recieve berg warnings from other ships nearby and the bergs were well south of their usual location for that time of year so nobody ws really looking for one.....
and so by the time they actually saw the sodding iceberg they had no chance of avoiding it..... or the 20 other factors that meant it sank......
nahhhhh.
ELVIS DIDNT DO NO DRUUUUGS
"Science flew men to the moon. Religion flew men into buildings."
hhfarang wrote:Sometimes it takes a hundred years for the real truth to come out.
From Yahoo news:
Titanic sunk by steering mistake, author says
Wed Sep 22, 11:50 am ET
LONDON (Reuters) – The Titanic hit an iceberg in 1912 because of a basic steering error, and only sank as fast as it did because an official persuaded the captain to continue sailing, an author said in an interview published on Wednesday.
What a load of rubbish, it was sunk by Germans, DESPITE desperate calls for help from the British captain.
Here's the proof ... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yR0lWICH3rY
