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the three were to have great influence on each other’s lives. He and Damian Miller learned to fly together at the
Australian National Airlines Flying School at Essendon. The training aircraft was a de Havilland Moth and Sam
got a commercial licence before going to Alice Springs to join Eddie Connellan’s new airline.
When war broke out Sam, along with one of his brothers and Damian Miller, returned to Melbourne to join the
Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). Their registration papers were in a hall, which burnt down, and the would-be
recruits were all but forgotten for some time. Sam felt that if it had not been for this incident he would have been
flying Wirraways in New Guinea instead of Typhoons in France. When he was finally called up he was sent to the
Initial Training School at Somers near Westernport in Victoria where his artillery training stood him in good stead.
Having been selected to train as a pilot he was sent to the Flying Training School at Temora in New South Wales.
After completing this course, Sam was sent, for twin-engine training, to the Seven Service Flying Training School
in McLeod, Alberta, Canada, the base where Australian and New Zealand pilots were trained under the Empire Air
Training Scheme during the war. Sam passed this course on Avro Ansons top of the class.
In December 1941, when he and his classmates were due to join Bomber Command in England Sam had to
receive treatment for a hernia which had originally given trouble during his school days. In England in February 1942
he ‘managed to talk my way on to training on single engine aircraft’. Sam then learned to fly Hawker Hurricanes,
the main Royal Air Force frontline fighter at the time. He learned formation flying, gunnery and target practice
and tactics. Next step was the Hawker Typhoon, not at all similar to the Hurricane and with a powerful, unreliable
engine. He joined 182 Squadron, which was just being formed, as a Pilot Officer and later was appointed to the
247 Squadron, which was a China-British squadron, having been formed in Shanghai. He flew Typhoons for the
next 22 months and during this time he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC). Although hit going
into a target he completed his task and returned home. In all he flew more than 100 missions. In August 1944 he was
relieved of flying duties, granted leave and posted back to Australia, arriving in December 1944. His appointment
with the RAAF was terminated on 19 March 1945 when he joined the Reserve and resumed civilian life.
In 1945 he married Daphne Campbell, whom he had met in Alice Springs while she was starring in the film
The Overlanders. The couple had four daughters though the marriage was later dissolved.
Sam returned to Connellan Airways and was the senior pilot until 1947. At that time a five day round trip
to Wyndham took in such remote localities as Mt Doreen, the Granites, Tanami, Gordon Downs, Nicholson,
Turkey Creek, Victoria River Downs, Wave Hill, Katherine, Timber Creek, Auvergne, Newry, Ivanhoe and
Argyle. The landing strips were dirt and built to Connellan’s specifications. As better aircraft became available so
the fleet was upgraded from the original Percival Gull to the de Havilland Hawk and then the DH90 Dragonfly,
which could carry about six passengers. Communication was by Morse from the air and by Traegar wireless from
the ground. Stations would radio Alice Springs to let them know that the plane had landed safety. The pilots not
only flew, they handled all necessary paperwork, manhandled the cargo and maintained the engine. Connellan
Airways had the flying doctor contract so an aircraft was on standby at all times for this purpose.
In 1947 Sam gave up flying as he had been asked to manage Singleton Station, near Wauchope on the Stuart
Highway. The station homestead was a bough shed at Wycliffe Well; some months later Sam and his family
moved to Cock Martin’s well some five miles away where there was a good bore. At the end of 1947 they
moved to Narwietooma Station, owned by Connellan, but at that time managed by Hughie Van Heythuysen.
They spent about 12 months there and, having missed out on obtaining Argadargada on ballot, returned to Orange
in New South Wales where Daphne’s father had an orchard. Sam then worked for his father-in-law. In 1951 they
returned to the Territory to manage Argadargada for Milton Willick and Damian Miller, the successful lessees.
Their first homestead was a Sydney Williams hut with no electricity but they did have a radio. Argadargada was
also on the Connair service between Alice Springs and Mount Isa. They remained there until 1959 when the
property was sold. Sam then became an assistant manager at Brunette Downs, which had just been purchased by
King Ranch from the White family who had owned it for many years. Sam quickly fell out with the manager and
was sacked though King Ranch realised several years later that the manager was, in Sam’s words, ‘a bad egg’ and
he too was dismissed.
With a young family, Sam and Daphne were glad to return to Alice Springs where he worked with the electrical
firm Murray Neck as a costing clerk. Sam became a director and shareholder of the Oasis Service Station and he
helped John Amadio run this for some years. It was while he was here that Sam was approached to stand for the
Commonwealth House of Representatives after a branch of the Country Party was formed in Alice Springs in
- Sam was well known in Alice Springs where he was captain of the cricket team, the local tennis champion
and involved in many community activities. At the time he had no financial interest in a pastoral property.
The Australian Labor Party had long held the sole Territory House of Representatives seat. For 17 years
Jock Nelson had held the seat but he retired and in 1966 Sam stood against Dick Ward. Despite having little
support from the media (the editor of the Northern Territory News, Jim Bowditch was a Labor supporter),
Sam was successful. In those days most campaigning took the form of public addresses by the candidate, often
from the back of a truck. Sam travelled throughout the Territory and won the seat by 480 votes though the final
result was not known for 10 days as so many results had to come in from missions and settlements and there was a
large number of postal votes. He held the seat until 1980 when he did not stand again. Commuting to Canberra was
slow and time-consuming and compounded by climatic changes but he tried to get home every fortnight.
During these years he became known as ‘Silent Sam’ as it was claimed he had little to say in the House though
he served on many parliamentary committees. They were, however, years of considerable improvement in the
Territory’s constitutional status. When Sam was elected the member for the Northern Territory only had the right to
vote on topics directly connected with the Territory. He used to attend all divisions as if he was voting and in 1968
he eventually gained a full voice in the House. Senate representation was another battle and in 1974 he crossed the