HMAS „Sydney“ – the Australian light cruiser

HMAS "Sydney", named after the Australian city of Sydney, was one of three modified "Leander"-class light cruisers in the Royal Australian Navy (RAN) service. Commissioned for the Royal Navy as HMS "Phaeton", the cruiser was purchased by the Australian Government and renamed before entering service in 1934. In her early operational history, "Sydney" helped enforce sanctions during the Abyssinian Crisis and, at the outbreak of World War II, was assigned to escort convoys and patrol Australian waters. In 1940 Sydney joined the British Mediterranean Fleet, in May was deployed there for 8 months, during which she sank two Italian warships, engaged in repeated shore bombardments and provided support for convoys to Malta. During that entire period, the ship was never damaged and there were no casualties among the crew. In 1941 returning to Australia in February, "Sydney" resumed convoys and patrols in Australian territorial waters. in 1941 November 19 "Sydney" engaged in a firefight with the German auxiliary cruiser "Kormoran" and was sunk with the entire crew (645 sailors). The wrecks of both ships were found only in 2008. "Sydney" was found on March 17, five days after his opponent's remains were found. "Sydney's" defeat is usually attributed to the closeness of the two ships during the engagement and the advantage of "Kormoran's" surprise and rapid, accurate fire. However, the fact, that the entire crew of the cruiser "Sydney" was killed, compared to the survival of most of the Germans, has given rise to conspiracy theories, that the German commander used illegal tricks to lure the "Sydney" to a comfortable distance, that a Japanese submarine was involved in the battle, and that the true circumstances of the battle are hidden, although there is no evidence for this.

A moderately complex, well-designed and richly detailed model of the Light Cruiser "Sydney" for intermediate to advanced modelers. Details, where necessary, are double-side printed.