Photo and Video Discrepancies

[Samuel Halpern]

13757. When you came out on deck was the ship already stopped or slowing down through the water? - [Lightoller] She was proceeding slowly, a matter of perhaps six knots or something like that.
13758. Were the engines still stopped? - I could not exactly say what the engines were doing after once I got up. It was when I was lying still in my bunk I could feel the engines were stopped.
13759. Can you help us as to whether the engines were put full speed astern? - No, I cannot say I remember feeling the engines going full speed astern.
13760. When you looked over the side you thought she was going through the water about six knots? - Yes, four to six knots. I did not stay there long.

Lightoller would know what full astern from full ahead would feel like since he took part in that very test during the trials. Descriptions of people like Poingdestre, who was asked a very leading question by the way, is that of the allision that took place with the berg and last just a few seconds.

 

[Jim Currie]

Happy New Year to you and yours, Sam.

Also according to Lightoller:

13734. If you were awake you felt something, I suppose? Just describe to us what it was you felt?
- It is best described as a jar and a grinding sound. There was a slight jar followed by this grinding sound. It struck me we had struck something and then thinking it over it was a feeling as if she may have hit something with her propellers, and on second thoughts I thought perhaps she had struck some obstruction with her propeller and stripped the blades off. There was a slight jar followed by the grinding - a slight bumping."

The sensation of a lost or damaged blade is exactly the same as the vibration caused by going astern. Lightollers said
"No, I cannot say I remember feeling the engines going full speed astern."

That's because they never reached full astern revolutions

We know from Trimmer Dillon that the engines never did reach full astern but they most certainly did turn astern and do so about 2 minutes after impact. That was just enough time for them to stop the engines and put them to full astern. However Dillon did not see the ER telegraph. Al he knew was that 2 minutes after impact, they started moving astern. That was long before Lightoller went out on deck. Who was on the bridge at that time do you think?

Lightoller's height of eye was 75 feet above the sea. he had emerged from a brightly lit accommodation onto a lit boat deck and looked down at the water. there's no way he could have guaged speed with any accuracy.. In fact he changed his speed from 6 knots to from 4 to 6 knots.

Jim C.