Zuytdorp Cliffs : From Cheryl and Gavin's Adventures

The Search for Sydney

Captain Joseph Burnett

RAN(1899 – 1941)

9

In 1991, McCarthy proposed that the search for Kormoran should precede the search for Sydney because more information was available about the location of Kormoran.

In 1997 Rear Admiral David Holthouse, an engineer with combat experience, advised the Ed Punchard-led HMAS Sydney Foundation Trust that the possibility that HMAS Sydney had travelled more than 200 nm from the scene of the battle and

• Failed to produce any survivors and

• Failed to transmit a signal

was extremely unlikely

Sydney was on fire after the battle. The Kormoran survivor’s reports provided estimates of the movement of Sydney following the battle, and enabled Kirsner (1997) to plot changes in the rate of separation between the vessels from 1800 hours to the last reported sighting some four hours later. A figure depicting the rate of separation is shown on the following page.

The following image shows the product of this analysis. The 1997 analysis provided a prediction for the position of the wreck of Sydney relative to Kormoran. The search area for Sydney was specified in FSF (2005)

Each circle depicts one report from a survivor indicating the time and the estimated distance of Sydney. The general direction offered with these reports was South-East.[from Kirsner (1997) and Kirsner, Norman and Dunn, 2003]

HMAS Sydney: Last recorded sighting from Kormoran @ 2200/19/11/1941

Function / Pattern leaves little scope

for a 200 nm voyage to the

Abrolhos Islands

Separation from 120 to 270 minutes after the battle consistent with separation rate of approximately 1

knot

Finding Sydney Foundation (2005)

Original map prepared and used by FSF for presentations to the Commonwealth, the states, the RAN, and private and corporate donors

Kirsner & Dunn (2004)Predicted position

and search box for Kormoran

FSF (2005)

Recommended search quadrant for Sydney given predicted position

of Kormoran.

FSF (2005)Adjusted search

quadrant for Sydney given

Observed position of Kormoran.

FSF / Mearns (2008)

Observed position of Kormoran

FSF/Mearns (2008)Observed position of

Sydney