When Lightoller started the apprenticeship at the age of 13, he had to sign a contract that he would never tell what happened on the ships. I can't remember exactly what the form was called but it was basically an oath that he wouldn't talk.
Unisinkable by Daniel Allen Butler points out that Lightoller was sucked down with the ship, so he might have been underwater at the time the ship split. Water rushing in might eben have freed him, saving his life.
@InternetDarkLord potentially. But the way he emphatically denied the ship broke in two makes me think he was coached beforehand. All the ships officers DID visit the White Star Line New York office before the American inquiry began. And the other surviving officers also denied it broke. Sense a pattern?
@@jpenir Actually, I would be more suspicious of the other officers, who were not underwater, and therefore had no excuse. The other three were safe in lifeboats, where other people saw the ship split. They were literally sitting next to people who saw it.
Fantastic episode and one i was very much looking forward to watching. This discussion made me double down on my opinion of Lightoller as absolutely not being the hero history paints him to be in the sinking of the Titanic. The lies and cover-ups and half-truths he uttered in his testimonies during the inquiries seal the deal for me.. Now, the matter of his WWI record is another point of discussion that i believe has no bearing on my opinions of him as a person and a human. We’re all flawed beings capable of mistakes as well as triumphs. WWI for him was a triumph, the Titanic disaster was not. I believe he may have been strongly haunted by his actions during the Titanic sinking that he most probably had vowed to himself that if an opportunity arises again to step up and save as many people as he could, he would take it. And sure enough, he did at Dunkirk. He lived, and he learned.
Unsinkable by Daniel Allen Butler points out Lightoller was sucked down by water pouring into the Titanic and might have been underwater when the ship split. I myself wonder if water pouring into the break freed him, in which case the ship breaking saved his life.
I think they wanted to get the starboard boats off sooner d/t the list to port - they thought they wouldn't be able to launch them straight down to the water if the port list increased. Also, the list to port caused the chasm between lifeboat and ship [on the port side] to be more, thereby ppl reluctant to attempt the leap.
@@InternetDarkLord He sent boatswain Alfred Nichols & 6 other men down to open the D gangway door, to load men from there. Lightoller never saw him again, but Alfred Nichols was seen, by witnesses, loading boats until the end. I think water was already pouring in so the men couldn't get the door closed after they'd opened it.
When Lightoller started the apprenticeship at the age of 13, he had to sign a contract that he would never tell what happened on the ships. I can't remember exactly what the form was called but it was basically an oath that he wouldn't talk.
I'm like 99% sure Lightoller probably saw the Titanic split in two but was told my Ismay or other White Star leaders to lie and say it didn't split.
Unisinkable by Daniel Allen Butler points out that Lightoller was sucked down with the ship, so he might have been underwater at the time the ship split. Water rushing in might eben have freed him, saving his life.
@InternetDarkLord potentially. But the way he emphatically denied the ship broke in two makes me think he was coached beforehand. All the ships officers DID visit the White Star Line New York office before the American inquiry began. And the other surviving officers also denied it broke. Sense a pattern?
@@jpenir Actually, I would be more suspicious of the other officers, who were not underwater, and therefore had no excuse. The other three were safe in lifeboats, where other people saw the ship split. They were literally sitting next to people who saw it.
Presley likes Lightoller because he would have saved her. Everybody else on this panel would have died on his side of the ship.
Fantastic episode and one i was very much looking forward to watching.
This discussion made me double down on my opinion of Lightoller as absolutely not being the hero history paints him to be in the sinking of the Titanic. The lies and cover-ups and half-truths he uttered in his testimonies during the inquiries seal the deal for me..
Now, the matter of his WWI record is another point of discussion that i believe has no bearing on my opinions of him as a person and a human. We’re all flawed beings capable of mistakes as well as triumphs. WWI for him was a triumph, the Titanic disaster was not.
I believe he may have been strongly haunted by his actions during the Titanic sinking that he most probably had vowed to himself that if an opportunity arises again to step up and save as many people as he could, he would take it. And sure enough, he did at Dunkirk. He lived, and he learned.
Unsinkable by Daniel Allen Butler points out Lightoller was sucked down by water pouring into the Titanic and might have been underwater when the ship split. I myself wonder if water pouring into the break freed him, in which case the ship breaking saved his life.
I think they wanted to get the starboard boats off sooner d/t the list to port - they thought they wouldn't be able to launch them straight down to the water if the port list increased. Also, the list to port caused the chasm between lifeboat and ship [on the port side] to be more, thereby ppl reluctant to attempt the leap.
Also, I thought that the lifeboats were going to be filled later. A party of 7 men was sent below, but vanished.
@@InternetDarkLord He sent boatswain Alfred Nichols & 6 other men down to open the D gangway door, to load men from there. Lightoller never saw him again, but Alfred Nichols was seen, by witnesses, loading boats until the end. I think water was already pouring in so the men couldn't get the door closed after they'd opened it.