HMAS Sydney On 19 November 1941, the cruiser HMAS Sydney was involved in a mutually destructive battle with the German ship Kormoran off Western Australia. All 645 aboard Sydney died. The battle between the Australian light cruiser HMAS Sydney and the German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran ("cormorant') was a single-ship action that occurred on 19 November 1941, off the coast of Western Australia.  Sydney, … Continue reading On this day (Australia): In 1941, all 645 aboard the HMAS Sydney died in a battle with the German ship Kormoran off Western Australia