Mystery ends in Australia WWII disaster

13 August 2009

The Australian cruiser met the disguised German vessel in the waters off western Australia two years after the two became enemies in World War II.
The gun turret of the Sydney II was discovered with the rest of the vessel in March 2008.
The Australian ship approached, trying to determine whether the vessel was friendly. It wasn't.
What resulted was Australia's worst naval disaster: the sinking of the Australian ship and the loss of its entire crew of 645. The wreckage wasn't found until last year, leading to decades of conspiracy theories about what actually happened.
On Wednesday a long-awaited report on the sinking of the Sydney II ended the mystery that began when it met its fate, November 19, 1941.
Made to look like a cargo ship, the German vessel was in fact a military raider that fired on the Australians when they got close. The Sydney fired back and, in the end, both ships went down.
More than 300 of the sailors on board the German vessel, the Kormoran, survived. But because they were the only witnesses to the disaster, some doubted their accounts, leading to various theories about the real fate of the Sydney.
After the wrecks of both ships were located in March 2008, an Australian commission began an inquiry to formally close the book on the loss of the Sydney.
The results confirm the accounts provided by the German sailors.
They said the Sydney closed in on the Kormoran until it was parallel with the German ship, little more than 1,000 yards away.for more detail please visit cnn.com

Posted by News Point at 4:40 AM  
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