When I first saw the story about the cruise ship that capsized after hitting a reef over the weekend, I wasn’t entirely surprised to see that references to the Titanic also appeared. However, the number of comparisons that can be made to the Titanic are actually minimal.

Yes, both ships were destroyed. One completely sank to the bottom of the ocean while the other did not. The number of lifeboats available on the Titanic was drastically insufficient. There were apparently lifeboats on the capsized cruise ship. However, that did not stop a chaotic, panicked manner in which passengers left the ship. The loss of life on the Titanic was huge and unnecessary. While the numbers are significantly lower for the cruise ship, it’s still too many.

One of the most significant differences, however, can be found when looking at the ships’ captains. Edward Smith, captain of the Titanic, went down with his ship. Francesco Schettino, captain of the capsized cruise ship, did not go down with his ship. Not only did he not go down with his ship, according to reports, he abandoned his ship before passengers and crew had been completely evacuated. In the maritime world, this is definitely a cardinal sin.

There’s often a lot of glory that goes with being a ship’s captain. However, there’s also a lot of responsibility. Nearly everyone is familiar with the expectation that a captain will go down with his ship. That doesn’t mean everyone literally expects the captain to stand on the ship and sink with it if he can save himself. It does mean, though, that everyone expects the captain to make sure his passengers and crew have been evacuated to safety. After all, the buck must stop somewhere, and on a boat, it’s with the captain. He’s the one in charge, and he’s the one who is supposed to know how to maintain order and to evacuate efficiently and safely. Captain Schettino failed this task.

I would speculate this disaster, which at last count had 11 dead and 25 missing, will be the end of the captain’s career. Schettino has already been ordered to house arrest and will be charged with manslaughter, abandoning ship, and causing a shipwreck. All of these are serious charges. Schettino could see a lot of prison time. To compound matters, Coast Guard commanders ordered Schettino to return to his ship and rather than do so, he made excuses for not returning. To dig the captain’s hole a little deeper, he had said in an interview in a Czech paper that he would not want to be in the Titanic‘s captain’s shoes, navigating icebergs and dealing with disasters. In the interview, Schettino went so far as to declare that passenger safety is the most important thing for the captain of a ship.

Here’s the thing about interviews. What you say is recorded for posterity, and it can come back to bite you. It certainly has for Captain Schettino. He will have a hard time explaining to an Italian court why he said that passenger safety is the most important thing and yet he abandoned his passengers and crew. I do realize that he was likely scared. Unfortunately for him, that’s not really going to fly in the face of such serious charges.

It may seem that everyone is coming down rather harshly on Captain Schettino. However, a ship’s captain is responsible for those aboard his ship. Accidents happen. I’ve no idea whether the reef could or could not have been avoided. I’m sure it’ll come up as part of his trial, but at this point, it’s really irrelevant. This captain shirked his most important duty. It’s likely the accident would have still resulted in some fatalities. However, had the captain stayed on his ship and taken responsibility for evacuating his passengers and crew, it’s also likely the number of fatalities could have been reduced.

It’s unfortunate Captain Schettino’s career had to end this way, but I think it’s safe to say his career is over. Even if he manages to avoid jail time for the crimes with which he has been charged, what company is likely to hire a captain that has already proven he’s not willing to make the necessary sacrifices and accept the necessary responsibilities to be captain? What crew, or passengers, would be willing to sail with such a captain? A captain doesn’t always have to go down with his ship, but he’d better make sure his passengers and crew are safe before he himself evacuates the ship.