Informal portrait of 23464 Able Seaman (AB) Martin Curtis James (left), of Newcastle, NSW, and ...

Informal portrait of 23464 Able Seaman (AB) Martin Curtis James (left), of Newcastle, NSW, and 35338 Leading Aircraftman (LAC) Keith Homard, 9 Squadron RAAF, of Broadmeadow, Newcastle, NSW, on the starboard deck of HMAS Sydney II. Both men were amongst the 645 crew members on board HMAS Sydney lost on 19 November 1941 when the Sydney was sunk in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Western Australia by the German auxiliary cruiser Kormoran. A despatch clerk prior to enlistment, AB James was aged 19 years of age at the time of his death. A travelling salesman prior to enlistment, LAC Homard had enlisted as a photographer in the RAAF on 10 March 1941, as he had previously had five years experience as a press photographer at the Newcastle Sun newspaper. LAC Homard was 27 years of age at the time of his death. The view of the deck looking forward shows many of the ship's features including the deck made of 7 inch wide Borneo white hardwood planks, an unidentified crew member on the ship's crane, and a 36 inch searchlight mounted on its sponson abreast the forward funnel. Lashed around the sponson are splinter mats. Behind AB James and LAC Homard are empy boat crutches which normally contain two of the ship's 35 foot motor boats, indicating that the ship is at anchor or moored to a buoy. The unidentified sub lieutenant at the left is standing at the aft end of the ship's bakery.