The loss of SS Titanic, 14 April 1912: Members of the ship's crew in their life jackets. Operated by the White Star Line, SS Titanic struck an iceberg in thick fog off Newfoundland. She was the largest and most luxurious ocean liner of her time, and thought to be unsinkable. In the collision five of her watertight compartments were compromised and she sank. Out of the 2228 people on board, only 705 survived. A major cause of the loss of life was the insufficient number of lifeboats she carried.