While Olympic was definitely a troopship during WWI, one webpage I saw also mentioned her as an Auxiliary Cruiser, which just sounds really cool for an ocean liner.
The questions I have (and forgive me if they've been answered before) are:
1. Were her peacetime officers drafted into Navy service, or did they loan themselves and their ship to the RN, or was Olympic completely incorporated into the RN and staffed with Naval officers who may not have been merchant seamen during peacetime?
2. What armaments and other wartime retro-fitting did Olympic receive? I only know of 4 6-inch guns, 2 fore and 2 aft. And from paintings and photos I could see that the boat deck was crammed full of lifeboats. Any further detail on those things as well as others I haven't mentioned would be really appreciated.
3. The marconigraph.com page on Olympic mentioned an unconfirmed rumor that Olympic sank a U-boat with her stern guns that was different to the one she rammed. Anyone know anything more about this rumored incident?
The questions I have (and forgive me if they've been answered before) are:
1. Were her peacetime officers drafted into Navy service, or did they loan themselves and their ship to the RN, or was Olympic completely incorporated into the RN and staffed with Naval officers who may not have been merchant seamen during peacetime?
2. What armaments and other wartime retro-fitting did Olympic receive? I only know of 4 6-inch guns, 2 fore and 2 aft. And from paintings and photos I could see that the boat deck was crammed full of lifeboats. Any further detail on those things as well as others I haven't mentioned would be really appreciated.
3. The marconigraph.com page on Olympic mentioned an unconfirmed rumor that Olympic sank a U-boat with her stern guns that was different to the one she rammed. Anyone know anything more about this rumored incident?
