Australian floating crane Titan Titan was a floating crane that operated in Sydney Harbour from 1919 until 1991 . She was fabricated in Carlisle in the United Kingdom , then sent to Cockatoo Island Dockyard in Sydney for assembly , before entering service with the Royal Australian Navy ( RAN ) . After being declared surplus to requirements , the crane became the property of Cockatoo Island Dockyard , which operated it until the dockyard ' s closure in 1991 . Although heritage - listed , " Titan " was sold to a Singaporean company , and authorisation was given to tow her to Singapore in 1992 . During the tow , the crane ' s barge inverted on 24 December , and the crane was scuttled five days later . Design and construction . " Titan " was fabricated in the United Kingdom during World War I by Cowans , Sheldon & Company of Carlisle , then transported to Australia in parts for assembly at Cockatoo Island Dockyard , Sydney . Ordered on 5 October 1916 , construction at Cockatoo commenced on 7 March 1917 . The crane was launched on 5 December 1917 . However , during construction , the 40 - ton lead screws for the crane ' s jib arm were lost when the merchant ship " Afric " was torpedoed . The crane could be used in a limited capability , although it was not until 1919 that replacement screws of sufficient quality were acquired . " Titan " was completed on 3 December 1919 . On completion , the crane was handed over to the RAN . " Titan " s cantilever - jib arm could reach above the surface at maximum extension . The crane could lift up to at an arm radius of , or at . Two counterweights were used to ballast the load ; water ballast tanks could also be used , but this rarely occurred . The crane was supported by a lattice mast fitted to a riveted - steel pontoon barge that was long , wide , and had a depth of . The crane was not self - propelled , and required two or three tugboats to manoeuvre her around . Power for lifting and rotating was supplied by a coal - fired boiler supplying three steam generators ( two 220 kilowatt generators and a 44 kilowatt auxiliary ) . The only connection between the crane arm and the lattice mast were drive shafts for the slewing ( rotational ) motors . " Titan " had a maximum displacement of . Operational history . " Titan " s main purpose was to provide heavy lifting services for Cockatoo Island Dockyard ; installing ships ' boilers and propulsion equipment , transporting heavy machinery to and from the island , and launching small craft . The crane also saw use unloading heavy deck cargo from ships , assisted in the construction of power plants , bridges , and other structures around Sydney Harbour and the attached tributaries , and was occasionally used for the salvage of vessels sunk in the harbour . Early in her career , the crane was used throughout the entire harbour , but the barge ' s poor seakeeping ability made it dangerous to tow the crane across Sydney Heads , and she was later banned from operating north and east of Bradleys Head . A modernisation of " Titan " began in the late 1960s . During the modernisation , the RAN decided that the crane was surplus to requirements , and suspended the upgrade in 1975 . Cockatoo Island Dockyard saw the value of keeping " Titan " in service , and continued the upgrades , including replacement of the steam - powered system with diesel generators . In 1989 , surveyors refused to renew the crane ' s port craft licence because of the age of the vessel ; in particular , rivets used during the pontoon ' s construction were showing signs of wear - and - tear . The dwindling need for the crane ' s services and the cost of completely refurbishing the craft saw the dockyard remove " Titan " from commercial service in 1991 . Approval for short - term projects was granted over the following two years , including the unloading and reloading of the locomotive Flying Scotsman during its visit to Australia , and the dismantling of a shore - based crane at Cockatoo Island . Sinking . After the closure of Cockatoo Island Dockyard , the Australian government decided to sell " Titan " . She was initially sold in April 1992 to a New Zealand company , which originally intended to return her to service . However , there was no longer any demand for the crane ' s services in Sydney , and " Titan " was on - sold to the Singapore - based Wirana Shipping Corporation in December 1992 . Although " Titan " was listed for protection under the " Protection of Moveable Cultural Heritage Act 1986 " , permission to export the crane to Singapore was approved on the condition that she return to Sydney by July 1995 . The crane left Sydney Harbour on 23 December 1992 , towed by Wirana ' s " Rapuhia " , a former research vessel . Although " Rapuhia " was physically capable of towing the crane , she was unregistered , and several safety certifications had expired or lapsed . Ten minutes before 23 : 00 on 24 December , observers aboard " Rapuhia " felt the ship jerk , and noticed that the navigational lights on " Titan " were no longer visible ; further inspection found that the tow - line had snapped , and the barge was found nearby , having rolled over . The official report states that " Rapuhia " towed the barge south to a suitable area for scuttling , but several people involved in the salvage and scuttling operation claim that the towing cable wrapped around the propeller shafts , and both " Rapuhia " and " Titan " drifted without control until divers cut the cable free . The crane arm fell off while the pontoon was inverted . The barge was manoeuvred to a point south - east of Camden Head . After several days inspection , it was determined that the remains could not be salvaged , and plans were made to scuttle her . A combination of a lift balloon and the cutting of holes in the bilges allowed the barge to brought from an inverted position to roughly 90 degrees from vertical , before she was scuttled on 29 December at 09 : 00 , sinking on of water . Subsequent investigation by the Department of Transport and Communication found that several rivets had failed on the starboard side of the pontoon , causing it to take large volumes of water . This loss of stability , combined with ocean and water conditions , plus the stresses of the tow resulted in " Titan " rolling over and capsizing . External links .