Editing RMS Olympic (section)

=== Post-war ===
[[File:OLYMPIC - Sjöhistoriska museet - Fo192178 (Cropped).jpg|thumb|''Olympic,'' photographed in 1922]]

In August 1919, ''Olympic'' returned to Belfast for restoration to civilian service. The interiors were modernised and the boilers were converted to oil firing rather than coal burning. This modification would reduce the refuelling time from days to 5 or 6 hours; it also gave a steadier engine R.P.M. and allowed the engine room personnel to be reduced from 350 to 60 people.{{sfn|Chirnside|2004|p=103}} During the conversion work and drydocking, a dent with a crack at the centre was discovered below her waterline which was later concluded to have been caused by a torpedo that had failed to detonate.<ref>[http://www.titanic-titanic.com/olympic_2.shtml Olympic II] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106104015/http://www.titanic-titanic.com/olympic-ii/ |date=6 January 2021 }} titanic-titanic.com</ref><ref>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2004|p=102}}.</ref> The historian Mark Chirnside concluded that the faulty torpedo had been fired by the U-boat [[SM U-53|SM ''U-53'']] on 4 September 1918, while ''Olympic'' was in the English Channel.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Chirnside|first1=Mark|title=Target Olympic: Feuer! |url= https://markchirnside.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/Article-OLY-Target-Olympic-Feuer.pdf |website=markchirnside.co.uk|access-date=1 May 2018|archive-date=6 January 2021|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210106103941/http://www.markchirnside.co.uk/Olympic-torpedoattack-U53-1918.htm |url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:RMS Olympic Passenger List 1923.jpg|thumb|left|upright|''Olympic''{{'}}s list of first-class passengers, 1923]]

''Olympic'' emerged from refit with an increased tonnage of 46,439, allowing her to retain her claim to the title of largest British-built liner afloat, although the Cunard Line{{'}}s {{RMS|Aquitania|3=2}} was slightly longer. On 25 June 1920 she returned to passenger service, on one voyage that year carrying 2,249 passengers, and carried more than 28,000 passengers throughout the second half of 1920.{{Sfn|Chirnside|2004|p=106}} ''Olympic'' transported a record 38,000 passengers during 1921, which proved to be the peak year of her career. With the loss of the ''Titanic'' and ''Britannic'', ''Olympic'' initially lacked any suitable running mates for the express service; however, in 1922 White Star obtained two former German liners, {{RMS|Majestic|1914|2}} and {{RMS|Homeric|3=2}}, which had been given to Britain as [[World War I reparations|war reparations]]. These joined ''Olympic'' as running mates, operating successfully until the [[Great Depression]] reduced demand after 1930.<ref>{{cite book|last=Chirnside|first=Mark|title=The 'Olympic' Class Ships|year=2011|publisher=The History Press|isbn=978-0-7524-5895-3|pages=115}}</ref>

During the 1920s, ''Olympic'' remained a popular and fashionable liner, and often attracted the rich and famous of the day; [[Marie Curie]], Sir [[Arthur Conan Doyle]], [[Charlie Chaplin]], [[Mary Pickford]] and [[Douglas Fairbanks]], and [[Edward VIII|Prince Edward]], then [[Prince of Wales]], were among the celebrities that she carried.<ref>{{cite book|last=Chirnside|first=Mark|title=The 'Olympic' Class Ships|year=2011|publisher=The History Press|isbn=978-0-7524-5895-3|pages=112–113}}</ref> Prince Edward and Captain Howarth were filmed on the bridge of ''Olympic'' for [[Pathé News]].<ref>{{Cite web|title = I'm Glad To Be Home|url = http://www.britishpathe.com/video/im-glad-to-be-home|website = British Pathé|access-date = 10 September 2015|date = 16 February 1925|archive-date = 6 January 2021|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210106103945/https://www.britishpathe.com/video/im-glad-to-be-home|url-status = live}}</ref> According to his autobiography,<ref>[http://www.archieleach.com/auto1.html Archie Leach, ''Ladies Home Journal''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210106104015/http://www.archieleach.com/auto1.html |date=6 January 2021 }}, January/February 1963 (Part 1), March 1963 (Part 2), April 1963 (Part 3)</ref> and confirmed by US Immigration records, [[Cary Grant]], then 16-year-old Archibald Leach, first set sail to New York on ''Olympic'' on 21 July 1920 on the same voyage on which Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford were celebrating their honeymoon. One of the attractions of ''Olympic'' was that she was nearly identical to ''Titanic'', and many passengers sailed on ''Olympic'' as a way of vicariously experiencing the voyage of her sister ship.<ref>Wade, Wyn Craig, "The Titanic: End of a Dream," Penguin Books, 1986 {{ISBN|978-0-14-016691-0}}</ref>
On 22 March 1924, ''Olympic'' was involved in another collision with a ship, this time at New York. As ''Olympic'' was reversing from her berth at New York harbour, her stern collided with the smaller liner ''[[HMAT Wandilla|Fort St George]]'', which had crossed into her path. The collision caused extensive damage to the smaller ship. At first it appeared that ''Olympic'' had sustained only minor damage, but it was later revealed that her [[sternpost]] had been fractured, necessitating the replacement of her entire stern frame.<ref>{{cite book|last=Chirnside|first=Mark|title=The 'Olympic' Class Ships|year=2011|publisher=The History Press|isbn=978-0-7524-5895-3|pages=117}}</ref>

On 7 June, Lord Pirrie died on a business trip aboard {{RMS|Ebro}} in the [[Caribbean Sea|Caribbean]] off [[Republic of Cuba (1902–1959)|Cuba]]. On 13 June ''{{lang|es|Ebro}}'' reached New York; UK ships in the port of New York lowered their flags to [[half-mast]]; and Pirrie's body was transferred to ''Olympic'' to be repatriated to the UK.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Lord Pirrie dies on ship bound here |url-access=subscription |newspaper=The New York Times |date=9 June 1924 |page=1 |access-date=5 March 2024 |via=Times Machine |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1924/06/09/104040873.html?pageNumber=1}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Bringing Pirrie's body. |url-access=subscription |newspaper=The New York Times |date=10 June 1924 |page=21 |access-date=5 March 2024 |via=Times Machine |url= https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1924/06/10/104042010.html?pageNumber=21}}</ref>

[[File:Olympic, Southampton, 1929.jpg|thumb|''Olympic'' at Southampton in 1929]]
Changes in immigration laws in the United States in the 1920s greatly restricted the number of immigrants allowed to enter. The law limited the number of immigrants to about 160,000 per year in 1924.<ref name=MC111>{{harvnb|Chirnside|2004|p=111}}.</ref> This led to a major reduction in the immigrant trade for the shipping lines, forcing them to cater to the tourist trade to survive.<ref name="thegreatoceanliners"/> At the turn of 1927–28, ''Olympic'' was converted to carry tourist third cabin passengers as well as first, second and third class.{{sfn|Chirnside|2004|p=120}} Tourist third cabin was an attempt to attract travellers who desired comfort without the accompanying high ticket price. New public rooms were constructed for this class, although tourist third cabin and second class would merge to become 'tourist' by late 1931.

A year later, ''Olympic''{{'}}s first-class cabins were again improved by adding more bathrooms, a dance floor was fitted in the enlarged first-class dining saloon, and a number of new suites with private facilities were installed forward on B deck.{{sfn|Chirnside|2004|p=119}} More improvements would follow in a later refit, but 1929 saw ''Olympic''{{'}}s best average passenger lists since 1925.

On 18 November 1929, as ''Olympic'' was travelling westbound near to ''Titanic''{{'}}s last known position, the ship suddenly started to vibrate violently, and the vibrations continued for two minutes. It was later determined that this had been caused by the [[1929 Grand Banks earthquake]].<ref>{{cite book |last=Chirnside |first=Mark |title=The 'Olympic' Class Ships |year=2011 |publisher=The History Press |isbn=978-0-7524-5895-3|page=120}}</ref>

==== Last years ====
The shipping trade was badly affected by the Great Depression. Until 1930 there had generally been around one million passengers a year on the transatlantic route, but by 1934 this had dropped by more than half. Furthermore, by the early 1930s, increased competition emerged, in the form of a new generation of larger and faster liners such as Germany's {{SS|Bremen|1928|6}} and {{SS|Europa|1928|6}}, Italy's {{SS|Rex}} and France's {{SS|Île de France}}, and the remaining passengers tended to prefer the more up-to-date ships. ''Olympic'' had averaged around 1,000 passengers per journey until 1930, but this declined by more than half by 1932.{{sfn|Chirnside|2004|pp=121–131}}

''Olympic''{{'}}s running mate {{RMS|Homeric|3=2}} was withdrawn from the transatlantic route as early as 1932, leaving only ''Olympic'' and {{RMS|Majestic|1914|2}} maintaining White Star Line's Southampton-New York service, although this was occasionally augmented during the summer months by either {{MV|Britannic|1929|6}} or {{MV|Georgic|1932|6}}.{{sfn|Chirnside|2004|p=135}} During slack periods in the summer, ''Olympic'' and fleet mate ''Majestic'' were employed in summer recreational cruises from New York to [[Pier 21]] in Halifax, Nova Scotia.<ref>{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20141109020615/http://www.ocean-liners.com/ships/bismarck.asp "SS ''Bismarck''/RMS ''Majestic''", ''Monsters of the Sea: The Great Ocean Liners of Time'']}}</ref>

At the end of 1932, with passenger traffic in decline, ''Olympic'' went for an overhaul and refit that took four months. She returned to service on 5 March 1933 described by her owners as "looking like new." Her engines were performing at their best and she repeatedly recorded speeds in excess of {{cvt|23|knots}}, despite averaging less than that in regular transatlantic service. Passenger capacities were given as 618 first class, 447 tourist class and only 382 third class after the decline of the immigrant trade.{{sfn|Chirnside|2004|p=127}}

Despite this, during 1933 and 1934, ''Olympic'' ran at a net operating loss for the first time. ''Olympic''’s Grand Staircase was painted avocado green along with pathways and pillars and the yellow line at the hull was lowered to look more similar to ''Majestic'' and ''[[RMS Homeric (1913)|Homeric]]'' during a 1933 refit. 1933 was ''Olympic''{{'}}s worst year of business – carrying just over 9,000 passengers in total.<ref>{{cite book|last=Chirnside|first=Mark|title=The 'Olympic' Class Ships|year=2011|publisher=The History Press|isbn=978-0-7524-5895-3|pages=357}}</ref> Passenger numbers rose slightly in 1934, but many crossings still lost money.{{sfn|Chirnside|2004|p=135}}