Best wishes for my people

The ship's frame was sheathed with steel sheets 9 × 1.87 m with a thickness of 2.5 to 3.8 cm, weighing depending on the thickness of 2.5 to 4.5 tons [27]. The sheets of the outer skin were the same size as the deck sheets. dimensions were standard for steel production at the time. During the construction of the Titanic, the highest grade steel was used, which remained the industry standard for many years after its construction. However, the steel sheets had a small defect before mounting. The fact is that on the ship "Garland and Wolf" perforation of holes for rivets was carried out "cold way" with a punch and sledgehammer, resulting in the formation of microcracks on the periphery of the holes [28]. The sheets were fastened with three rows of steel and iron rivets. The metal for the rivets was not of the highest quality. When ordering the rivet material, Garland and Wolfe opted for the № 3 bar of the Best standard, while most shipbuilders already preferred the № 4 (Best-best) model, which was traditionally used to make anchors. , chains and rivets. The tensile strength in sample № 4 approached 80% of the similar characteristic of steel, while in № 3 this figure was only 73% [27]. In all, more than three million rivets were used to build the Titanic. 75% of them were hammered by hand, the rest - with a hydraulic riveting gun

After the construction of the double-bottom flooring, steel frames were installed perpendicular to the keel on both sides, which were profile beams. The frames of the starboard and port sides were connected by transverse steel beams - beams, to which deck decks were later attached. By November 20, 1909, the main metal skeleton was ready - a frame of partitions and 300 transverse steel frames. The 20-meter-high frames reached the deck of the sixth deck (deck B) and were at a distance of 91 cm from each other, but in the bow this distance was reduced to 60 cm, and in the stern - to 69 cm. by installing frame frames over short distances

The drawings of the future giant were approved on July 29, 1908. The Titanic was assigned serial number 401. On March 31, 1909, the liner's keel was laid. The ship was built next to another Olympic liner, construction of which had begun earlier. The construction of the Titanic was carried out according to the classical scheme: on a horizontal stake - a monolithic steel beam 7.62 cm thick, a vertical one was installed. Beams were attached to it, connected by riveted steel sheets, which formed a double-bottom flooring. Stringers were installed on the sides of the keel, which provided the longitudinal strength of the body. On Olympic-class vessels, 4 stringers of the bottom were installed on each side between the central beam and the end sheet. In addition, additional stringers were installed under the future engine room to increase strength

For the construction of the "Olympic" and "Titanic" - the first steamers of the "Olympic" class, three old shipyards had to be rebuilt into two new ones [21]. In preparation for the construction of liners over two new berths by the bridge construction company "Sir William Arrol & Co." gantry frames 69.5 m high, 83 m wide and weighing more than 6,000 tons were erected, and a 200-ton frame-tower gantry crane, the largest in the world at the time, was erected above them. Another 12 auxiliary mobile cranes and 6 mobile trusses (3 above each berth) were installed to perform various lifting works.

In order to remain competitive among shipbuilding centers, the shipyard Harland & Wolff in Belfast in 1903 began construction of the largest dry dock in the world at the time. William Pirry predicted an increase in the size of ships in the short term. The new building was named "Thompson's Dry Dock", contracts for its construction were concluded in 1903 with a term of 3.5 years. Scout & Middleton, a London-based firm, was the main contractor, but local companies were also involved in the £ 350,000 work. The length of the dock was 259 m, width - 39 m, thickness of the base - 6 m. Before construction began at the mouth of the river Lagan, expensive work was carried out to deepen the bottom. The dock was intended for the construction and repair of large ships, such as Olympic-class liners.

At the beginning of the twentieth century in the transatlantic market there was a fierce competition between the main transport shipping companies of the time - the companies "Cunard Line" and "White Star Line". Both were British, but in 1902 the White Star Line was bought out by John Pierpont Morgan, an American financial magnate and owner of the International Mercantile Marine Company (IMM), with the intention of monopolizing transatlantic roads, eliminating competition and meeting common cost standards. passenger and freight traffic [14]. Joseph Bruce Ismay, a financier and son of the company's founder, was involved in the sale of White Star Line to JP Morgan and remained with the new owner as the company's general manager and CEO. "Cunard Line" was under the influence of the British Admiralty [15]. In 1907, Cunard Line commissioned the Lusitania and Mauritania steam turbines, the largest ships in the world at the time. In addition, they were able to reach speeds of up to 25 knots (46 km / h), which allowed them to cross the Atlantic Ocean in just 5 days.

On April 14, at 11:39 p.m., sailor Frederick Fleet reported to the captain's bridge about the iceberg on course. The collision took place in less than a minute. After receiving several holes, the ship began to sink. Women and children were put in boats first. At 2:20 a.m. on April 15, the Titanic sank in two parts, killing 1,496 people. 712 survivors were picked up by the steamer "Karpatia" [13].

The wreckage of the Titanic lies at a depth of 3750 m. They were first discovered by Robert Ballard's expedition in 1985. Subsequent expeditions lifted thousands of artifacts from the bottom. The bow and stern parts went deep into the bottom silt, their rise to the surface is impossible.

On April 10, 1912, the Titanic set sail from Southampton to New York for its first and only voyage. After stopping in Cherbourg, France and Queenstown, Ireland, the liner sailed into the Atlantic Ocean with 1,317 passengers [8] [9] [10] and 908 crew members [11] on board. He was scheduled to arrive in New York on April 17. The ship was commanded by Captain Edward John Smith. On April 14, the Titanic radio station received seven ice warnings, but the liner continued to move almost at maximum speed. To avoid meeting the icebergs, the captain ordered to go a little south of the usual route.

The Titanic's cabins and public spaces were divided into three classes. First-class passengers were offered a swimming pool, squash court, À La Carte restaurant, two cafes and a gym. In all classes there were dining and smoking lounges, open and closed promenades. The most luxurious and refined were the first-class interiors, made in various artistic styles using expensive materials such as mahogany, gilding, stained glass, silk and others. The cabins and salons of the third class were decorated as simply as possible: the steel walls were painted white or lined with wooden panels.

The Titanic (RMS) is a British transatlantic steamer, the second Olympic Star liner of the White Star Line. The largest passenger ship in the world at the time of its construction. During the first voyage on the night of April 14-15, 1912, the liner collided with an iceberg in the Atlantic Ocean and sank.
It was built in Belfast on the shipyard "Harland & Wolff" from 1909 to 1912. The Titanic was equipped with two four-cylinder steam engines and a steam turbine. The entire power plant had a capacity of 55,000 hp. The liner could develop a speed of up to 23 knots (42 km / h). Its tonnage, which exceeded the twin steamer "Olympic" by 243 tons, was 52,310 tons. The hull was made of steel. The hold and lower decks were divided into 16 watertight compartments by partitions with airtight doors. When the bottom was damaged, the double bottom prevented water from entering the compartments. Shipbuilder magazine called the Titanic virtually unsinkable, and this statement became widespread in the press and among the public. According to outdated rules, the Titanic was equipped with 20 lifeboats, with a total capacity of 1,178 people, which was only a third of the maximum load of the steamer