Olson researched the loss of HMAS Sydney in World War II for nearly a decade before publication of his first book in 2000 by UWA Publishing,[2][failed verification] after which he became recognised[by whom?]
A feature of Olson's works is his use of contemporary diaries (from friend and foe alike), leading to a sense of 'being there' in and around the action, bringing both the heroism and horrors of war from the perspective of both sides in the conflict into stark and immediate focus.
With a boyhood interest in World War II British warship design, Olson learned of the Western Australian Maritime Museum's 50th anniversary international forum seeking to resolve the mysteries surrounding the loss of HMAS Sydney with all hands in November 1941 and to commence or facilitate a search.
After contacting staff for a copy of the papers from the forum, it was learned that Olson also had a background in incident investigation with the railways and he was invited to join the museum's Department of Maritime Archaeology as a volunteer researcher assisting in its HMAS Sydney studies.
Olson's first research task was to compile a comparative study examining all World War II vessels that had sunk in a similar manner or been severely damaged.
After completing that database and producing an internal report, his next task was to examine whether a carley float with human remains onboard that was found at Christmas Island in 1942 could have come from HMAS Sydney.
In 2023 Olson assisted James Parkinson, Director of ROV Services Australia, to produce an information graphic of the wreck of SMS Emden at North Keeling Island.
Olson then became research assistant and historical advisor to David Mearns of Blue Water Recoveries prior to the 2008 search and discovery of HMAS Sydney and HSK Kormoran.
As a result of his earlier work on the subject, Olson became historical advisor before, during and after the Western Australian Museum and Curtin University expedition to revisit the wrecks of HMAS Sydney and HSK Kormoran in 2015.