Name Edward Connellan | ||
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Died December 26, 1983, Northern Territory, Australia | ||
Edward John ("EJ" or "Eddie") Connellan AO, CBE (24 June 1912 – 26 December 1983) was an Australian aviator who founded Connellan Airways and was a pioneer of aviation in the Northern Territory.
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Early life
Connellan was born on 24 June 1912 at Donald in western Victoria, the eldest of seven children to his parents Thomas and Lucy Connellan. At Donald the family owned farming and grazing property. Connellan's station life continued when the family moved to the Riverina district of New South Wales.
He was educated as a boarder at Xavier College in Melbourne to complete his secondary education in 1927 and 1928. After school he joined the Victorian Education Department and became a teacher. He resigned as a teacher in July 1933, with ambitions to build a stake to establish a cattle station in the Northern Territory. After teaching he gained his private pilot's licence on 8 July 1936.
The Northern Territory
In October 1937 he prepared a report "Notes on proposals for Aerial Freight Transport in Australia" with an aim to develop the remote region of northern Australia. In 1938 he undertook two aerial surveys of the Northern Territory to investigate pastoral land for the government and select land for a cattle station for himself, his brother and two friends.
During the survey he met with the Federal Minister responsible for the Northern Territory, John McEwen, and discussed the role of air services in the region. Connellan agreed to a three-year trial of an air mail service between Alice Springs and Wyndham in Western Australia, which attracted a subsidy from the federal government. The mail run commenced on 11 July 1939 and worked on a fortnightly return basis. He also agreed to a contract for an Alice Springs-based Royal Flying Doctor Service.
While doing aerial surveys to assess the viability of an air service in 1938 Connellan picked out the land for the pastoral station, Narwietooma Station, he later established in 1943.
Connellan Airways
In the midst of World War II Connellan consolidated his air services, which had grown viable and included more routes, and registered Connellan Airways on 23 July 1943. In June 1944 Connellan became a founding member of the Northern Territory Development League. In the post war years Connellan Airways grew, acquiring new routes and equipment. In February 1951 it became a limited company, with many of the shares held by station people and staff. In 1963 Connellan Airways became a regular public transport operator. In 1970 the name was changed to Connair. Connair faced financial difficulty in the 1970s and was sold to East-West Airlines on 14 March 1980. It went into liquidation shortly after.
Along with three other employees, Connellan's eldest son Roger was killed on 5 January 1977 when a disgruntled ex-employee flew a stolen plane into the Connair building at Alice Springs Airport in what became known as the Connellan air disaster.
Connellan Airways Trust
The Connellan Airways Trust was started by Connellan towards the end of his life. When Connellan Airways was sold in 1980, there were 50 shareholders with the Connellan family holding slightly more than 50%. Most shareholders agreed to contribute 47% of their receipts from the sale to the Trust. It was established by a deed of trust dated 12 June 1981 and officially launched by Deputy Prime Minister Doug Anthony on 11 February 1983 at the Central Australian Aviation Museum. The Trust aims to encourage knowledge and education in outback Australia. In 2004-05 A$140,308 was granted to 140 applicants.
Awards and death
In 1953, for services to aviation, Connellan was awarded the Queen's Coronation Medal. In 1957 he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the New Years Honours List, "for services to civil aviation in Northern and Central Australia". In 1965 he was awarded the Oswald Watt Gold Medal for his "outstanding contribution to general aviation". In 1978 he was promoted to a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, and in 1981 appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia "for services to aviation and the community".
Connellan died at the end of the year the Trust was opened, on 26 December 1983. He is buried in the memorial cemetery at Alice Springs, adjacent to the cemetery is a museum dedicated to Connellan and Connellan Airways.