Rev. Dr. J. Flynn

'He was a dreamer, and a visionary... and his dream was to make the outback secure.'

As politicians in the 1920s were trying to decide how to build a better Australia, it became apparent that development of Australia's rural industries would be a key factor in building Australian economic stability. When the National-Country Party came to power, it took initial steps in improving the lives of farmers and other workers involved in primary industry, but these improvements focused mainly on taxes on imported and manufactured goods. Flynn's contribution centred on improving people's lives - he identified and proposed viable solutions to the problems and difficulties farmers and rural populations faced. He brought communication and contact with the city to people in isolated communities and gave them hope both spiritually and socially. He not only changed the lives of individuals but set up organisations such as the Royal Flying Doctor Service, which continues to save lives every day.

From inventing a pedal-operated radio to setting up the Royal Flying Doctor Service, Flynn's innovations have dramatically shaped how people live in the bush today. He was a selfless individual who laboured tirelessly for other people.

Flynn's Early Life

John Flynn was born on 25 November 1880 in Moliagul, Victoria. His mother died when he was two years old. John and his brother and sister were raised by their father, Thomas Flynn, who was a strict school teacher. Influenced by his father's religious sentiments, John and his siblings attended bible class during their childhood. John became interested in life in the outback after hearing many stories about the bush from his father.

Flynn attended University High School and then studied at the Theological Hall in Melbourne.

John Flynn started his career as a teacher with the Victorian Education Department but soon decided to become a Presbyterian minister. He travelled to the bush and worked as a lay preacher - he preached the gospel without being formally qualified as a minister. He studied at the University of Melbourne and was ordained in 1911.

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In 1909, at the age of 29, Flynn was working as a missionary in Beltana in northern South Australia. He set up a hostel supervised by nurses and a Presbyterian padre (a priest). By 1926, these hostels developed into a network of ten centres placed around the area. Flynn helped the farmers and people living in the bush by providing books and magazines, treating basic illness and injury, and fixing mechanical gadgets such as watches and clocks.

He witnessed first-hand just how difficult it was to live in the outback with long distances separating people from basic amenities such as shops and hospitals. Communication was almost non-existent as there were no telephones and few radios. These vast distances often threatened people's lives. It is said that Flynn was deeply concerned when he saw the graves of people who may not have died had they received proper medical treatment.

Flynn wrote a report on the type of assistance people living in the outback needed and how the Church could provide this assistance. This report was so important that it was published into a book entitled The Bushman's Companion. The book also gave helpful hints to people living in the outback on topics as diverse as writing a will, handling money, conducting a funeral and basic first aid. But there was more work to be done and Flynn was only beginning.

Australian Inland Mission

In 1912 after travelling and meeting people in the outback, Flynn was able to create and lead a program created by the Church called the Australian Inland Mission. Flynn identified the need for outback hospitals, travelling missionaries and libraries. The Mission's members were affectionately called 'Flynn's Mob'. The Mission helped set up 15 hospitals to make the outback more comfortable and safe for those who lived there. Flynn told his mob to 'go out and listen to people'.

Flynn himself was always dressed neatly in a suit and smoked a pipe but drove an old ute. His appearance helped win the respect of rural people who said that 'he looked like a bloke from the city but always had the smell of the bush about him'.

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In 1917, Flynn heard news of a stockman named Jimmy Darcy who was seriously injured when he fell from his horse on his country property in Western Australia. It was 500 kilometres to the nearest doctor and 50 kilometres from a town. Darcy's friends discovered him and rushed to get assistance. A doctor in Perth was contacted by Morse code. The doctor had to reply in Morse code with instructions for an operation. Although they had no medical experience, Darcy's friends performed the operation to save his life. Thirteen days later after travelling by boat, car, buggy, horse and foot, the doctor from Perth arrived. Unfortunately, Darcy had died three days before.

Touched by the story of Jimmy Darcy, John Flynn took it upon himself to find a way to bring medical help to people living in the remote regions of the outback.

World War I was the inspiration for Flynn's next endeavour. He believed that in order to achieve his goal of making the bush a safer place to live, he needed reliable transport and communication. The 1920s found pioneers like Charles Kingsford-Smith flying vast distances in aeroplanes. It was the aeroplane that would provide Flynn with the means of transporting doctors and nurses to injured people in the bush.

When the government could not provide funding for the service, Flynn travelled to each of Australia's capital cities, raising money from the public through various fundraising events and raising awareness about the difficult circumstances in which rural populations found themselves.

The first aeroplane to carry doctors and nurses to the outback was a De Havilland 50, leased from QANTAS. Flown by pilot Arthur Affleck, it left Cloncurry for Julia Creek on 17 May 1928. In the first year of operation Dr K.H. Vincent Welch flew 32 000 kilometres and visited 255 patients.

Flynn recognised the need for federal support if the service was to be available to all Australians living in the bush. He frequently met with members of parliament and negotiated with the Presbyterian Church for further assistance.

In 1933, Flynn was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for the contributions he had made to improving the lives of people in the outback.

In 1934, Flynn's work had paid off. The government lent its weight to the Aerial Medical Service and the service was officially established and supported. In 1942 the name was changed to the Flying Doctor Service of Australia, and in 1955 it became known as the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia. Today, the Service has 13 bases and covers 80 per cent of Australia. It was the first and largest aero-medical service in the world.

Flynn's Other Contributions

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Flynn worked with a man named Alfred Traeger who created a system of pedal-powered radios that allowed people to contact one another in case of emergency but also for general social interaction across the lonely outback. Flynn was particularly concerned about social interaction in the bush and so he also set up a pen pal system for people in the outback to contact people in the city.

Flynn set up a magazine called The Inlander which informed people in the outback of national news. It also gave hope to people in the bush and discussed his plans for the future.

In 1951, Flynn died from cancer at the age of 71. His ashes are buried near Alice Springs. He has had more memorials dedicated to him than any other Australian.

Flynn's contributions were many, but all focused on improving the lives of individuals living in isolated communities in the bush. In the 1920s the government pushed industry and workers to the limits to improve Australia's economy. Often in this push for success, the individual was lost. Flynn ensured that farmers and their families would no longer have to be out of sight and out of mind - he provided them with a means to access proper health care and communications.

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