The Flying Doctors

• 1986-1992
• 9 seasons
• Drama

This series chronicles the events surrounding the activities of the Royal Flying Doctors Service, which operates its own aircraft--in this case from the base at Coopers Crossing, an otherwise hardly-notable town--to fly its medical staff throughout the Australian outback, where roads are too scarce and distances too immense to reach patients for medical care or get them to hospital by car in time. Doctors, nurses, pilots, and base staff change throughout the seasons, often coming from the city and finding difficulties adapting to life in the godforsaken countryside and being accepted by the isolated local community; there are, of course, the usual colleague stories. In most episodes they make one or more flights for routine medical examination sessions and/or emergency help, sometimes continued on board and/or in the hospital. Furthermore there are various sidelines, mainly concerning the local characters such as bar-owners Vic and Nancy, who also provide the only rooms, and some of their regulars, including local shopkeeper and busybody Violet Carnegie and arrogant richest businessman George Baxter who are very influential in the indispensable fund-raising.