What was John Flynns claim to fame?

Answer 1

John Flynn is the person who started the Royal Flying Doctor Service which provides emergency and routine medical care to the people of rural and inland Australia. He was also a Presbyterian minister, and was known as 'Flynn of the Inland.'

Flynn was first posted as a Presbyterian minister at Beltana, a remote settlement hundreds of kilometres north of Adelaide, South Australia. He experienced great difficulties reaching such a widely scattered population, so he was appointed as the first Superintendent of the Australian Inland Mission, the 'bush department' of the Presbyterian Church, in 1912. Flynn served in the AIM during a time when just two doctors served an area of 300,000 sq kms in Western Australia and 1,500,000 sq kms in the Northern Territory. Flynn realised there needed to be better medical care for the people of the outback, so he established numerous bush hospitals and hostels.

By 1917, Flynn saw that new technology such as radio and the aeroplane could help provide a more effective medical service. His inquiries caused him to be contacted by an Australian pilot serving in World War I, Clifford Peel, who outlined the capabilities and costs of then-available planes. An excellent fundraiser, Flynn turned his talents to the task of establishing a flying medical service. On 15 May 1928, the Aerial Medical Service was established at Cloncurry, in western Queensland.

To help communication with such a service, Flynn worked with a man called Alfred Traeger, who developed the pedal radio, which was a lighter, more compact radio for communication, and therefore more easily available to residents of the outback for its size and cost. The pedal radio meant there was no need for electricity, which was available in very few areas of the outback in the 1920s. In this way, Flynn joined the advantages of both radio and aeroplanes to provide what he called a "Mantle of Safety" for the outback.

Although supposed to be just a one-year experiment, Flynn's Royal Flying Doctor Service, or RFDS, has continued successfully through the years, providing a valuable medical service to people in remote areas.

Answer 2

John Flynn's claim to fame was when he started the Royal Flying Doctor Service. It provides emergency and routine medical care to people in rural and inland areas.