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Ever since I first learned about Titanic in middle school, I've been fascinated with this ship. No other ship in the history of ocean travel has demanded as much interest as the Titanic. Volumes of books, TV documentaries and several movies have been produced regarding the most infamous shipwreck in history.

The sinking of the Titanic was far more than a simple accident. It was a tragedy that could have been prevented. It was the result of a long, long chain of mistakes, a fatal series of avoidable human errors that sent Titanic and more than half of her passengers to their watery graves

The most astonishing premonition of all is a novel which seems to forewarn of the disaster 10 years before the Titanic was even built. It's called Futility, written in 1898, by Morwan Roberston. In it a colossal new ship named the Titan on it's maiden voyage from England to New York in April when it strikes an iceberg and sinks in almost the exact spot the Titanic goes down 14 years later. Everything about Titan is strikingly identical to Titanic. The story even predicts correctly which side of the ship the iceberg will strike. The entire text of Morgan Robertson's novella "Futility, or The Wreck of the Titan" can be read online.

Ten Big Mistakes Made

During the design/building:

During the maiden voyage:
5. The binoculars were lost in the very beginning. Actually, when Second Officer Blair was asked to leave the ship, in his haste to disembark, he accidentally takes with him the keys to his locker which contains the binoculars for the lookouts in the crows nest. As a result, the lookout guys in the crows nest didn't see the iceberg until it was too late.

6. Captain Smith skipped an emergency drill. As a result, there was chaos after the ship hit the iceberg and nobody knew what to do or how to use the lifeboats.

7. Captain Smith ordered the ship at full speed. This is despite the report of icebergs & a clear dark sky that evening. No proof has been found that the Mr. Ismay had discussions with the Captain to have the ship go at full speed.

8. Iceberg warnings ignored & not delivered. An iceberg warning sat in Captain Smith's pocket ignored and some never made it to the Captain from the wire room. The man working the wireless didn't put the iceberg warnings as a priority because the passenger wires were more important - what they get paid to do. Therefore they were put aside.

Also, thorough the day the wireless room received 6 iceberg warnings, put together they indicate a giant ice field of nearly 80 miles directly in the ship's path, but no one thinks to put them together. Most of the warnings went un-noticed on the bulletin board. Later, when the California tries to warn Titanic about ice, by interrupting Titanic's wire, Titanic's wireless operator replies rudely back "Shut Up, I'm busy." The California operator then hangs up his head set and turns in for the night.

9. The crew on duty ordered the engines reversed when the iceberg was reported. A BIG Mistake. This just slowed down the ship from making the turn. It would have been better to hit the iceberg head on. Sadly, further records of the Titanic accident history indicate that the Titanic disaster may very well have been able to have been completely avoided had officers on ship paid heed to reports received earlier regarding the frozen waters they were approaching.

10. Lifeboats not filled to capacity. Some lifeboats were not even half full, resulting in more lives lost that could have been saved. Crew feared it would buckle, even though they were tested at Belfast. They could have saved 500 more lives. Also, the boats refused to return to the ship rescuing more people fearing the sinking Titanic would suck them in - which was not true.

Also, one of the officers mis-interprets Captain's Smith order of Woman and Children First as Women and Children Only, thus costing men their lives.