Titanic: The Mission

In the final episode of the series the engineers explore the safety features on board Titanic and the heroic efforts of the engine room staff who gave their lives in their desperate bid to help evacuate the sinking ship and summon help.

When Titanic left Southampton on 10 April 1912 she was equipped with the very latest safety features, including a Marconi wireless transmitter and watertight emergency doors to prevent sea water flooding through the ship. And even though it's well documented that she didn't have enough lifeboats, the number she had still exceeded the Board of Trade requirements. The team's mission is to try and re-create a number of safety elements to explore their effectiveness on the fateful night of her sinking.

Brendan tracks down a 100-year-old Marconi Emergency Wireless Transmitter and begins a delicate restoration of this antiquity with the aim of transmitting a message. He discovers that the radio set wasn't just a safety device; it was also used to send First Class passenger telegrams. In the busy hours leading up to the disaster the wireless operators were sending passenger messages. A nearby ship, The Californian, tried to warn them of icebergs directly ahead but was told by Titanic's wireless operator that he was blocking the airwaves and to keep quiet: one factor among many in the tragedy.

Meanwhile Dave and Yewande make one of the flares that Titanic launched on the night. Along the way they explore Britain's most dangerous industry - explosives production - and reveal how Titanic's sinking changed maritime safety regulations for ever. Luke's task is to make a Titanic lifejacket. Taking basic measurements from one of the nine remaining original life-jackets, he makes and tests a 100-year-old design, and finds out that even the most basic safety device did save lives.

Titanic's tragedy caused shockwaves around the world but the hardest hit city was Southampton, which lost 549 of its citizens, who had been employed as crew. Dave explores how this tragedy affected the city and how the world responded with the first mass appeal to help those affected: The Titanic Relief Fund. As a mark of respect Luke restores one of Southampton's most prominent Titanic memorials: The Titanic Engineers memorial. At a public unveiling the engineers re-dedicate the memorial to the unsung heroes who worked to the last manning her pumps, keeping the lights on and crucially providing the power that transmitted the emergency distress signals that ensured 700 passengers were rescued.