www.ninemsn.com.au/sunday
Sunday, July 1 from 9am-11am

The disappearance of the HMAS Sydney without trace in November 1941 with its full war complement of 645 men remains to this day Australia’s single worst naval disaster. The circumstances surrounding the loss have never been fully explained.

Over the years there has been much speculation as to exactly what happened that day and whether there had been any survivors from the Sydney. The wreck of the ship has never been located although there is growing pressure for a full scale search to find the resting place. The only documented finding from the Sydney was a body in a raft washed up on Christmas Island. That body has never been identified but over the last year the navy has exhumed the sailor. Last week they announced they had
narrowed it down to three possible men.

Tim Lester looks at the work that has been done to identify the body and talks to the families of the three possible sailors. He also looks at the growing pressure on the government to locate the wreck and have it declared an official war grave.

AMERICAN ANGST

Rarely has America asked citizen soldiers to shoulder so much of the burden of war. One third of the troops fighting in Iraq are National Guard and Reserve—more than 400,000 soldiers called away from their civilian lives.

In 2005, a battalion from the Iowa National Guard was formed – made up of many fathers, sons and brothers serving together. CBS 60 Minutes have been following the Iowa guardsmen and their families for nearly two years. The soldiers of the 1st Battalion of the 133rd Infantry left their loved ones with high hopes. Most had never seen combat before and some would never see Iowa again. On the road ahead of the Iowa guardsmen lay casualties, both in Iraq and at home. This is the fascinating journey
that we follow in this revealing documentary on the Iowa Troop.