Less than a month later, "Houston" and the Australian light cruiser HMAS "Perth" (D29) were directed to proceed to Ceylon, where they were supposed to attack Japanese naval supply lines. En route, the two ships unexpectedly encountered a Japanese invasion force, resulting in the encounter now known as the Battle of Sunda Strait. Though outnumbered by the Japanese convoy, both ships persisted. In the ensuing melee one of the Japanese destroyers fired a spread of torpedoes that passed by the allied cruisers and sunk four of their own troopships. In the end, the Japanese forces proved too much for the wounded "Perth" and "Houston." The final attack on these two cruisers sank first "Perth" and then "Houston" shortly before midnight on March 1, 1942.