The colossal cruise liner had been built with bulkheads in its bow in the event of a collision. If the ship had hit the iceberg head-on therefore, it's predicted that only the first three or four watertight compartments would have been flooded, a less severe alternative to what actually happened.

Marine engineers and historians often debate this "what-if" scenario, with many concluding that the Titanic likely would have survived a direct head-on collision. The ship was designed with a reinforced bow and transverse bulkheads; a head-on impact would have likely crushed the first two or three watertight compartments. While the damage would have been catastrophic at the bow, the ship was built to remain afloat with its first four compartments flooded. By swerving, the iceberg scraped along the side, puncturing five compartments—one more than the limit for buoyancy. However, a head-on collision would have resulted in an instantaneous stop, potentially throwing passengers forward and causing massive structural shock that might have popped rivets elsewhere. While the ship might have stayed afloat, the loss of life among the crew and passengers in the forward sections would have been significantly higher during the initial impact.