[1][2][3][4] Under the command of Kapitän zur See Hans Langsdorff, Admiral Graf Spee sailed from Wilhelmshaven on 21 August 1939, bound for the South Atlantic.

[1][2][3][4] Graf Spee's first victim was the Booth Steamship Company's steamer Clement which she sank on 30 September, following which she proceeded to sow a ruse by transmitting the call sign of her sister ship Admiral Scheer.

Having intercepted and sunk the cargo liner Doric Star on 2 December off South West Africa, at 05:18hrs[2] on the morning of Sunday 3 December 1939 by the use of its FMG G(gO) "Seetakt" Radar the Graf Spee made contact with the Tairoa which was under the command of her Master, Captain William Starr, and was en-route from Brisbane to London laden with meat, lead, wool and other general cargo.

[1][2] At the time the standard operating procedure of Kapitän Langsdorff was to approach his quarry head on, at maximum speed, and to fly the French Ensign.

[1][2] Langsdorff made visual acquisition with the Tairoa at a distance of approximately 5 nautical miles (9.3 km; 5.8 mi) with Graf Spee positioned just off Taiora's beam.

"[1][2] Onboard the Tairoa it was decided to ignore the banner and her Wireless Officer, Patrick Cummins,[2] continued to broadcast the R-R-R signal ("I am being attacked by a raider") as well as giving the ship's position.

Following the evacuation of the Tairoa, Graf Spee proceeded to sink the vessel opening fire with her secondary armament of 15 cm (5.9 in) SK C/28 guns from a distance of approximately 300 yards.

This was followed by a torpedo that scored a direct hit amidships which sank the Tairoa at a position 648 nautical miles (1,200 km; 746 mi) south-east of St Helena.