The wreckage of HMAS Sydney that sank with all 645 men aboard in a fierce World War II battle was discovered 66 years after it sank on November 19, 1941, after a grueling battle with the German vessel DKM Kormoran in the worst naval disaster  in Australia’s history. 

All 645 sailors aboard the Sydney were lost and its final resting place remained elusive until sonar technology advanced enough to scour waters more than 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) deep.  The Kormoran also sank but 317 of its member crew survived and rowed lifeboats to the Australian coast, being held prisoners. 

Australians were long been unconvinced that the Sydney could have been lost to the German auxiliary cruiser and for years, various theories have emerged such as a Japanese submarine was the real culprit why the Sydney sank or that the Kormoran’s crew machine-gunned Australian survivors. 

In a news conference, Chief of the Royal Australian Navy, Vice Admiral Russ Shalders with PrimeMinister Kevin Rudd stated: 

“For 66 years, this nation has wondered where the
Sydney was and what occurred to her.  We’ve uncovered the first part of that mystery…the next part of the mystery, of course is what happened.” 

Request to find the Sydney had raved intensity in recent years as siblings and widows of crew members have pleaded for answers before they die.  The search began two weeks ago and is headed by U.S. shipwreck hunter David Mearns. 

Headlines have speculated the Sydney approached the German raider, which had been disguised as a Dutch merchant ship before the battle, thinking it had surrendered and that the Kormoran then opened fire with the first devastating salvo of the battle.  The German survivors denied this, saying they dropped their disguise and hoisted the German ensign before firing on the Sydney. 

Many opposed the accounts given by the German survivors of the battle, which are the only witnesses.  The Sydney’s radio remained silent throughout the brief and ferocious battle.  Australian newspapers have published accusations the German crew massacred
Sydney survivors with machine-gun fire.  The Germans who survived steadfastly denied such accusations, which were never supported by evidence.  The Germans said they were in life rafts when they last saw the blazing Sydney proceeded with difficulty over the horizon toward Perth, lighting the night sky as it burned from bow to stern. 

There’s another popular theory that the Sydney was sunk by a Japanese submarine a month before Japan officially entered the war by attacking the US Navy at
Pearl Harbor, Hawaii.  Though, there was no evidence found to support this claim. 

In 1999, a parliamentary inquiry stated the Korean’s underwater torpedo tubes have been decisive in the Australians’ catastrophic loss and there were sonar images of the
Sydney wreck which supports the theory.