Auckland in three days and two and a half hours, which broke the previous record by four hours. Her Master, Captain Morrisby, stated that she had maintained a speed of about and must at times have reached . In July 1914 Niagara broke her own record with a crossing from Sydney to Auckland of three days and half an hour. In May 1915 Niagara set a new westbound record across the Tasman Sea by steaming from Auckland to Sydney in three days and 23 minutes. This record stood until 1931. As well as breaking Australasian speed records, Niagara gained a reputation for reliability, and for stability in all weathers. First World War On 28 July 1914 the First World War began. On 15 August Niagara and another Union Company liner, , were held for some days at Honolulu because the German cruiser was reported to be near the coast of British Columbia. During the war Niagara sailed blacked out, and she varied her course and speed in response to reported sightings of German warships. In March 1915, en route from Sydney to Auckland, Niagara lost one blade from her middle screw. This unbalanced the screw, which damaged both her middle propeller shaft and its bearing. Her engineers shut down her turbine and she reached Auckland on 22 March at using only her port and starboard screws driven by her triple-expansion engines. Niagara carried a spare propeller shaft and screw. She was dry docked in Calliope Dock, where her damaged propeller shaft and screw were removed and replacements installed. Engineers worked around the clock and completed the repair in 40 hours, enabling Niagara to leave the dock on 26 March and return to service. At the time Niagara was the largest ship to have been dry docked in New Zealand. She fitted into Calliope Dock with just clearance fore and aft and on either side. In May 1915 wartime security aboard Niagara was tightened. Police, customs and military authorities in Sydney thoroughly searched the ship, and searched all baggage and questioning all crew and passengers before allowing them aboard. Security in Auckland was also tightened. By December 1915 there was a shortage of merchant seafarers in Sydney, and ships including Niagara had difficulty finding enough to make a full complement. But there was a particular shortage of stokers and trimmers, which affected Niagara less because she normally burned oil instead of