WesWorld

Hello Wesworld,

I have been thinking lately of a rebuild of the forgotten White Star Line steamship "RMS Britannic"

I have found several drawings of her interiors as well as extensive information about her technical details (i.e. double hull, engine, lifeboats, etc), but don't know how i should approach a rebuild of her. Any ideas?

Also, if there are any HMHS/RMS Britannic fans out there, what kind of nickname would you give this fine Edwardian lady? I was thinking "Aunt B" or something similar -- i guess the builder doesn't nickname the ship, the traveling public does...

Had Britannic survived WWI, she likely would have gone through the same life cycle as Olympic did; Which is to say, not a whole lot. She was brought into the yard for an overhaul post-Titanic (which brought her in line with many of the improvements built into Britannic), and another refit after WWI which converted her to burn oil, and freshened up her fittings and furnishings. Britannic would likely have undergone a very similar refit, as both ships were being returned to civilian service after their roles as Troopships and Hospital ship.

Olympic had minor refits in the last 5 years of her life, mostly to put more toilets in staterooms, and introduce "Tourist" accomodations in lieu of steerage. Britannic would, again, likely have similar alterations, and end up out of service by the mid 30s like her sister, due to the downturn in the global economy (and transatlantic service), and finally the merger with Cunard.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Olympic#Post-war

As for nicknames, you're correct; Olympic's was Old Reliable, and she was very well thought of by her clientele.

How would you guys approach a rebuild of RMS Britannic , White Star's last titan? How much tech would i have to change to make her financially and market suitable? I assume i can make her do cruises when off the transatlantic, and luxurious ones at that...but how would i approach this?

She is my favorite liner...i feel a certain kinship with Britannic as IK Brunel did with his Great Eastern (his "Great Babe") Well...Britannic is my "Great Babe"

So plz help me out and give me words of encouragement and praise for her to come back. I just hope and pray Britannic will see the light of day once again. It would be a dream come true.

Honestly, by the 30s she's too old to be viable. She's too slow and too small to compete with the modern superliners (Normandie, the Queens), and too big and too expensive for other routes.

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Honestly, by the 30s she's too old to be viable. She's too slow and too small to compete with the modern superliners (Normandie, the Queens), and too big and too expensive for other routes.

I meant for the Britannic to be rebuilt in modern times, so from a modern shipbuilding standpoint, is it worth it? If so, how would i go about doing this? What sort of concessions would i have to make? What could i keep?

plz comment...Britannic didn't even enter passenger service for White Star, so they didn't get to experience the charm and grace of her interiors...perhaps she would have been a good (if not better) ship than Olympic. A rebuild of her is long overdue.

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Originally posted by RMSCANADA
I meant for the Britannic to be rebuilt in modern times, so from a modern shipbuilding standpoint, is it worth it?

Simple answer: "um, no, definitely not."



Not so simple answer: While it might be technically possible to raise the ship, it's not economically viable due to the extensive difficulties that would be involved. When the wreck was rediscovered in the 1970s the investigations determined that she was too fragile even then to be raised, and another forty years of decomposition will not have helped her along. Finally, the British and Greek governments list her as a War Grave and expeditions to her have to be approved at a governmental level - so raising her would be politically unviable.

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I meant for the Britannic to be rebuilt in modern times, so from a modern shipbuilding standpoint, is it worth it?

I think it seems that you guys don't get what i am asking. -Sigh- It's okay, here it is again: What I meant by this was rebuilding the Britannic from original H&W plans, not raising the actual ship. I thought of it as a sort of memorial to those 30 souls that perished that fateful November day.

Also, any nicknames you would give Britannic would be greatly appreciated...

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Originally posted by RMSCANADA

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I meant for the Britannic to be rebuilt in modern times, so from a modern shipbuilding standpoint, is it worth it?

I think it seems that you guys don't get what i am asking. -Sigh- It's okay, here it is again: What I meant by this was rebuilding the Britannic from original H&W plans, not raising the actual ship. I thought of it as a sort of memorial to those 30 souls that perished that fateful November day.

That was not made apparent to me in your earlier posts. I don't think a replica ship would be economically viable in service - even more modern ships like the Queen Mary have generally succumbed to service as floating hotels, and modern cruise ships have so much more internal room for passengers and entertainment...

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Originally posted by RMSCANADA
Also, any nicknames you would give Britannic would be greatly appreciated...

"Beer-Battered Brit." *Flees from the pitchforks!*

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Originally posted by RMSCANADA

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I meant for the Britannic to be rebuilt in modern times, so from a modern shipbuilding standpoint, is it worth it?

I think it seems that you guys don't get what i am asking. -Sigh- It's okay, here it is again: What I meant by this was rebuilding the Britannic from original H&W plans, not raising the actual ship. I thought of it as a sort of memorial to those 30 souls that perished that fateful November day.

First, it would not be legal to build Britannic to her original plans, as there have been numerous safety and environmental standards introduced since then that she would not meet.

As to building a replica in general, there's been several proposals for building replicas of the Titanic. The fact that none have been pursued to completion should speak to their viability (or lack thereof).

http://www.titanic-titanic.com/replica_titanic.shtml
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Replica_Titanic

If you guys want a gander at what RMS Britannic might have looked like in her service for White Star, check out these pics:

Here are some pics of BRITANNIC with her White Star livery-- she is very beautiful in this paint sheme (in my opinion)







Isn't she just beautiful?

Any comments would be appreciated....

Could you please not post ultra-wide images? It messes up the text on all the other posts in the page and makes it hard to read. Thanks.

Thumbnails are a board's best friend.

Sorry guys, i didn't know. My bad...

Anyway, here are some smaller pics of Britannic if she survived to White Star passenger service...enjoy!









This one is my FAVORITE...Britannic and Olympic tied up alongside each other during WW1




That's all for now...plz comment on the pics

Hello guys,

I'm back on the Britannic Discussion. Here are my thoughts for a Britannic rebuild...

Design and Engineering
1. Create full watertight compartments at C-deck level by welding shut all openings below this deck.
2. Carry double hull up to C-deck to further increase safety.
3. Replace steam engines with diesel-electric system, third and fourth funnels serve as air intakes for diesels, use biodiesel for cleaner emissions.
4. Delete central shaft and enlarge rudder for better maneuverabiliity.
5. Add bulbous bow and bow thrusters to hull forward.

Eco-Friendliness
1. Use biodiesel to power engines rather than oil - much cleaner.
2. Possible use solar panels to lessen electric load from generators. These would be placed around the funnels.
3. Use non-toxic paints on the hull.
4. Use as much recycled material as possible in the construction of the ship.
5. Implement energy-saving devices in interiors and engineering.

SOLAS Regulations
1. Keep decor the same, but use non-flammable materials to comply with SOLAS fire regulations.
2. Install fire sprinklers, fire extinguishers, fire alarms, low-level lighting, etc. to increase fire safety.
3. Firezones created every 130 feet in the hull.
4. Modern lifeboats (20) placed on boat deck--QM2 bypassed the "place lifeboats 15ft above waterline" regulation, meaning she could put her lifeboats higher up to protect them from Atlantic storms. I intend to do the same.

Navigation / Safety
1. The ship will have GPS, radar, sonar, all the technical stuff to keep the ship safe at sea.
2. Enclosed bridge???

Interior Fittings / Plans
1. Keep most of the public rooms, like the Grand Staircase, Reading and Writing Room, Gymnasium, and more. Bring them up to date on tech. and regulations.
2. Delete third class entirely and remodel into "tourist class" like Olympic had in the 1920s.
3. Implement modern amenities into design, but keep classic liner appearance--that is the essence of this project.
4. This is just a thought...make a communal (not seperate) promenade outside passenger cabins in B-deck, allows all passengers on that deck to walk freely from one end of the deck to the other, without obstruction.

That is all i have right now...plz comment...

It would not be a cost-effective rebuild today, I'm afraid.

Have you considered finding an ocean liner or cruise ship forum, perhaps? You'd likely be able to find more interest in such a forum, if one exists, and be able to share your ideas with other ocean liner enthusiasts.

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Originally posted by RMSCANADA
Eco-Friendliness
1. Use biodiesel to power engines rather than oil - much cleaner.

No it's not. Contrary to popular belief Bio-fuels doesn't burn any cleaner than regular fuel.
It has a lower sulphur content than most marine diesel, but that's a production choice rather than an inherent feature of marine diesel.