LV-117 was a steel-hulled vessel with steel deckhouses fore and aft, a funnel amidships for engine exhaust, and two masts.

"[4] She was moored in 30 fathoms (180 ft; 55 m) by 2 in (5.1 cm) diameter steel chain cables attached to a pair of 7,000 pounds (3,200 kg) anchors.

[5] On February 8, 1931, LV-117 took aboard the eight-man crew of the fishing schooner Aloma, which sank 5 mi (8.0 km) from the lightship.

[2][6] The near-sinking caused great concern to the lightship's crew; in April 1934, radio operator John Parry told friends, "Some day we are just going to get it head on, and that will be the finish.

Nearly 75 times larger than the 630-ton lightship, the White Star liner was steaming at about 20 kn (37 km/h; 23 mph) in the center of the western terminus of the trans-Atlantic shipping lanes.

Her radio operator attempted unsuccessfully to make contact with LV-117 to determine her exact position, but the fog signals could still be heard, apparently at a longer distance off the starboard bow.

Although she was not moving fast, her sheer weight (52,000 tons when fully fuelled), and thus her kinetic energy, completely wrecked the smaller vessel.

The changed settings of the engines were much more noticeable, sending vibrations throughout the ship as they were put into reverse and brought up to maximum revolutions.

[7] Passengers came onto the deck to find out what was going on and were met by the smell of oil and the sight of debris in the sea around Olympic.

[9] The scene was described by The New York Times: Nosing through the dense pall of the fog, the boats searched the area for almost two hours, while those on board the liner prayed for their success.

One man in civilian clothes, Captain Braithwaite, sat stiff and upright ... a cut on his head bled profusely ..."[9]The three boats managed to rescue seven of the lightship's eleven crewmen and brought them aboard, but three of the seven died in Olympic's hospital.

Mosher, Radio Operator John Perry and Oiler Laurent Robert all survived the disaster.

[9] The liner had suffered only minimal damage in the collision, comprising some dented hull plates which were repaired in a dry dock in Southampton in May–June 1934.

[13][14] The lightship now rests about 200 ft (61 m) deep, lying on her port side in an area with unpredictable currents up to 3 kn (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph).

[15] It was discovered in the 1970s by Captain Paul Forsberg of the Viking Fleet fishing concern, though it was not clear at the time that the wreck was that of LV-117.

Its identification was not confirmed until as late as July 1998 when an expedition led by diver Eric Takakjian made the first of what would be many visits to the wreck site.