HMHS Britannic, the sister ship of Titanic & Olympic was bulit bigger & safer, as it was still in the shipyard at the time of Titanic's tragic loss. HMHS Britannic served in the Balkans following the outbreak of WWI as an efficient hospital ship of the British Admiralty. In the morning of November 21st, 1916, a devastating explosion caused its sinking 1.5 nm off the Cycladic island of Kea, Greece.
The wreck now lies on her starboard side at the depth of 120 meters (393 feet) on flat, sandy bottom, preserved in excellent condition, almost intact with the exception of the damage produced at the bow by the explosion. The exact cause of the explosion is not known till this day, it was either cause by an accidental encounter with a sea mine, or a deliberate torpedo hit by a German WWI submarine.
The Greek government has characterized Britannic a monument and a special license is required to visit it. Additionaly, the site of the wreck is in the middle of a very busy shipping lane. Last, any moderately adverse weather conditions seriously affect the site & make any diving operation impossible, due to high waves & strong currents. Those that manage to overcome all this, know it is all worth it.
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The Diver Training Organization runs the Project Britannic 2012, which is a combined scientific study licensed by the Greek Ministry of Culture for the period May 15th to June 15th, 2012. Head coordinator is Mr. Alexander Sotiriou
The goals of the study are: i) Evaluation of the condition of the wreck, and ii) Estimation of the effects of the wreck on the surrounding environment & organisms.
The methods used are: i) digital phtography & video of certain parts of the wreck already depicted in the past & comparative study, ii) medium term in situ automatic water sampling for post analysis, iii) selected spot manual sea bottom sampling for post analysis, iv) selected spot marine organisms sampling for post analysis
Ulysses Multihull Adventures proudly participates in Project Britannic 2012 with Sailing Catamaran ATHOS, which will be used as the base of all these activities, as well as hosting of journalists, scientists & volunteers.
S/C ATHOS is well equipped with 2 dive compressors, 2 generators, desalinator, constant AC power with high output inverters, which offer the necessary background for successful operation of these high demanding technical dives, with comfort, safety & convenience.
For further details on the Project Britannic 2012, you can visit www.projectbritannic.com and for any other information on how you can participate contact Mr Alexander Sotiriou at info@divertraining.org
