Olympic and Titanic drove their central four-bladed bronze propeller with a low-pressure turbine, while four-cylinder reciprocating engines powered the two outboard propellers. The plant paired well-understood machinery with one newer, less familiar system. Olympic-class designers chose this cautious mix even during a commercial race for speed. They declined to rely on turbines for the whole propulsion plant. Reliable Atlantic crossings mattered more than theoretical performance gains because a breakdown was worse than a slower passage.
Chapter · 5:38-8:08
Olympic-class hybrid propulsion
Titanic and Olympic combined familiar reciprocating engines with a low-pressure turbine because relying entirely on the newer technology still looked risky.