1. Will to Survive  

First aired: 5/15/1986

City doctor Cris Randall arrives in Coopers Crossing but many locals object to having a female doctor at their local RFDS station. Violet is particularly outspoken in her resentment. When Chris takes radical action to save a patient's life, things go from bad to worse. The Nomad is unable to take injured Jim Spencer back to the hospital. His leg injury is so horrific Chris believes his life is at risk. She decides to amputate his leg in very challenging circumstances, even though his wife argues strongly against it. Meanwhile, Tom and Kate treat Ted with a stomach complaint but end up trying to re-unite him with his sons.

2. Trial By Gossip  

Following the amputation of Jim Spenser's leg, Chris faces a cold reception from the locals of Coopers Crossing; patients refuse to be teated by her and Baxter threatens to take her to court. The locals remain convinced she could have treated him without resorting to amputation. Meanwhile, Chris suffers from recurring nightmares about that fatal night at the Spenser's property and she has moments of self doubt. Later, Chris finds herself in the midst of another emergency when a young girl who is suffering from croup needs an emergency tracheotomy on a flight back to the Crossing. Baxter and the girl's mother are vehement that Chris should not perform the procedure. Tom talks to Baxter via the radio in an effort to convince him to support Chris in her decision to treat the girl. Meanwhile, the RFDS gets a new pilot when David Gibson arrives, along with his pet dog Zepplin.

3. Hot Enough For You  

A naive English family who have no knowledge of the conditions in the Outback have a tragic time. The Robertsons are on their way to a job on an outlying property when they get lost en-route. After a night in the car, Mrs Robertson and her two sons Alfred, Alexander and their new born baby daughter remain at the car while Mr Robertson goes off looking for help. However the heat gets too much for Mrs Roberson, and she suffers from dehydration and collapses as a result. Meanwhile, her disobedient sons run off and also become lost in the bush. When the Robertsons fail arrive for their new job, an emergency is declared and the search is on to find them before the heat kills them. They manage to locate all family members but it is too late for one of them.

4. Dreams of Sand  

Vic is suspicious of Sharon and Gibbo's growing friendship and when he finds them sneaking out of the pub together, he demands Gibbo finds alternative accomodation. Tom is left 'piggy in the middle' trying to convince Gibbo to keep his distance from Sharon and he lets Gibbo, and his dog, stay with him. Meanwhile Hurtle is back in the Crossing and in love. During a slide show, he accidentally includes a picture of a mystery woman. When the locals press him, he reveals that she is Dot; the woman he is going to marry. He tries to persuade Ron to buy the garage business from him so that he can go up the coast, but Ron is unable to raise enough money when the bank declines his loan application. Later, when Dot arrives, Hurtle's dreams of a new start with the woman he loves are shattered when she refuses to marry him. To add insult to injury, Hurtle receives a snake bite. Chris and Tom come into conflict over the treatment of old opal miner, Rabbit. When he injures himself while blasting the mine, Chris is desperate to treat him in hospital and then put in a home but Tom is adamant that it should not happen; he wouldn't be able to afford to, even if he wanted to go there. When Chris finds a place for Rabbit in a care home behind Tom's back, she finds that Tom is not the only one who objects to going there.

5. Public Property  

Bruce decides to marry the woman he's been writing to, Joylene, however he gets a bit of a shock when they first meet face to face: she is pregnant. When he rejects her, Tom allows her to stay with him while things are sorted out. Meanwhile, Bruce's brother takes a shine to Joylene. Will he be prepared to marry her instead?

6. Is Nothing Sacred  

A woman, Debbie Wilson, arrives in the Crossing with a mission to protect Aboriginal land rights. However, many of the locals are not too happy, especially George Baxter who wants to keep the ancient Aboriginal artwork he has found on his property a secret. While George is determined to keep people off his land, Tom causes a raucous when he invites Debbie to dinner. Don Shepherd, who works for Baxter, has his own motivations for keeping the sacred sight he knows about a secret.

7. Square Pegs  

Matt Cameron finds the ambitions his father, Andrew, has given him too difficult to live up to. Things are not aided by the fact that Andrew is a highly successful farmer and he belives his son ought to be as successful as he is. Unable to cope with the pressure of having such a demanding father, Matt takes drastic steps to relieve the situation. Meanwhile, Tom has a difficult time treating Ruth Pitt who lives on the outskits of town in a tent. When she becomes ill with a heart condition, there is a problem with identifying who will look after her son who has severe learning difficulties.

8. Sins of the Fathers  

When a young pregnant woman called Pru arrives at her aunt and uncle's, the Windsors, Tom suggests she goes into hospital to give birth to avoid possible complications. However, she is adamant that she wants to stay at the Windor's. Following a difficult birth, it emerges that the Windsors are not Pru's relatives at all, they want to buy the baby. Will Pru be able to give it up so easily despite having signed a contract? Meanwhile, Hurtle and Ron take the art of babysitting a bit too far when they decide to put on a firework display: Ron ends up having to go to Sydney for treatment. Violet organises the Coopers Crossing fancy dress party and Chris and Tom start the town gossiping when they arrive together as Anthony and Cleopatra.

9. Rally to the Cause  

The town of Coopers Crossing is in an enthusiastic mood when an international rally hits town. Gibbo finds himself attracted to the sassy racer Sandra. When someone is out to ruin her chances of victory and her car is found sabbotaged, Sandra and Gibbo work around the clock to put things back in good mechanical order. Meanwhile, Chris befriends French rally driver Pierre and Tom becomes intensely jealous, despite realising he has no hold over her. He even results to taking Gibbo's dog a walk in order to spy on them when they go back to Chris'. Little does he know that Pierre has simply fallen asleep on the couch. Later when Tom goes to see Chris to find out her feelings for Pierre, he is pleasantly surprised at what she has to say on the matter. Hurtle also gets quite a shock when his niece Emma arrives and expresses an interest in working as a mechanic at the garage.

10. Talk of the Town  

First aired: 7/21/1986

Emma finds that she has bitten off a bit more than she can chew when she attempts to take over the garage accounts and put things in order. Many of the bills have been unpaid and when the electricity is cut off it's the final straw. When she asks Violet to settle her bill, they decide to work together and organise things. However, Violet hides the secret behind her inability to eat lammingtons: she is a diabetic but in denial. Meanwhile Chris and Tom have difficulty finding time for themselves and their new relationship is the talk of the town. When Violet refuses to take her illness seriously and has to be hospitalised, another intimate evening for the smitten couple is ruined. Ron returns from Sydney sporting an injury and he doesn't take too kindly to Emma's new found authority at the garage.

11. Do You Read Me  

Chris causes quite a stir when she gives the pill to a teenager, Linda, without her mother's knowledge. However, the word is soon out when Linda goes to the local pharmacy to collect the presciption. To make matters worse, Linda's mother, a teacher, intensely dislikes Linda's boyfriend Max as she considers his socially inferior. George Baxter also becomes involved when he finds out what Chris as done as he is in the process of seducing Linda' mother: he threatens to sue Chris for her irresponsible behaviour. Chris is even more aggravated by the town's reaction and refuses to back down. However, it's all a bit too late as Linda finds out that she is pregnant. when she and Max run away together tragedy strikes when the vehicle they are travelling in crashes.

12. E.T. - New Girl in Town  

On their way back to the Crossing after a clinic round, Tom and Gibbo find themselves staying at an isolated property for the night. They discover a man, his dying mother and his daughter Amanda. As the woman lies dying, she instructs Tom to take her grand daughter away from the property. However when they attempt to leave with Amanda the following morning, her father has strong objections. Tom and Gibbo manage to take off with Amanda on board the Nomad but the father is determined to track her down and get her back. While Amanda is staying in the Crossing, she finds life adapting to the modern world very difficult and so she becomes deeply attached to Tom. Later when her father arrives to take her back, Tom puts his life at risk and Chris is livid with him. After Jack does a bit of research into the man's background, some disturbing dark secrets are revealed.

13. A Choice of Enemies  

An ex-boyfriend of Chris', journalist Darcy Adams, arrives in the Crossing and quickly alienates all those around him. He tries to rekindle his relationship with Chris, and although Tom is jealous, she makes it blatantly clear to Darcy that she is now with Tom and consequently not interested in him. Wealthy but naive son of a millionaire Adrian Bailey goes out cycling around the outback. However his lack of knowledge about the environment soon results in disaster. Meanwhile, Tom has to decide between going to the aid of Adrain, who has been warned not to go in to the outback alone, and a seven year old boy with severe burns. Tom decides to prioritise treating the boy and unfortunately Adrian dies. Darcy is more than content to portray Tom as an evil villain when he writes an expose on the RFDS. Later, Adrian's father gets wind of events and decides he wants to sue Tom and the RFDS for failing to treat his son. However, Sharon tries to intervene to prevent legal action being taken. Baxter takes an interest in an old and vulnerable couple's property and tries to convince them to sell, even though it is all they have left in life.

14. Departures  

First aired: 8/18/1986

Sharon decides that she wants broaden her horizons and leave the Crossing to study in Sydney however not everyone is pleased for her. Gibbo feels rather put out that his friend did not even tell him that she had applied. Her friends and colleagues at the RFDS are really happy that she plans to become a social worker but Vic is absolutely livid with her. Nancy, who is already upset by Sharon's impending departure, is made even more unhappy by the friction between Sharon and Vic. Meanwhile seasoned alcoholic Jim Dason goes on his monthly 'bender'; he gets drunk in the pub and smashes it up. Tom and Jack are concerned for Jim's well being and they eventually manage to get him back to his property and his wife Peg. But Peg has had enough of her husband's drunken ways and, like Sharon, she too is determined to change her life forever.

15. A Lost Generation  

First aired: 8/25/1986

When Clare Dobson's car breaks down in the middle of no where and she is forced to stay in the Crossing whilst it is being fixed, Gibbo and Ron find themselves fighting for her affections. Meanwhile, Nancy lends a hand at the RFDS when she acts as a temporary replacement for Sharon. The erection of a war memorial in the centre of town causes friction: the locals are delighted to honour their dead but Chris objects as she believes that it glorifies war. However when Joe begins to suffer from post-traumatic stress as a consequence of his experiences in Vietnam, Chris begins to see things in a different light. Joe considers a job offer from elsewhere and Violet receives the surprise of her life when it emerges that Clare Dobson is not just any old visitor to the town; she's Violet's grand daughter.

16. Someone Special  

Two familiar faces depart Coopers Crossing. Tom's conscience is troubled when he sees a documentary on the famine in East Africa. He is torn between his desire to go there and help make a difference and his relationship with Chris. Meanwhile an oblivious Chris makes plans for their future and talks of marriage. Violet believes Chris and Tom are about to announce their engagement and tells everyone on the Crossing the good news. Chris is devastated when Tom explains his decision to work in Africa. He suggests that she could go with him but she cannot bring herself to leave the Crossing so soon after arriving. She makes it clear their relationship is over. As Tom has not renewed his contract with the RFDS the town's people immediately assume he is leaving for some fancy private clinic in Sydney and so they ostracise him. It is up to Kate to put them in the picture. Ron also has trouble leaving and Emma has great difficulty in getting him out of the garage and away from the beer and card table. On the morning of his departure, Tom goes to see Chris when she is on her way to an emergency: it's an emotional farewell.

17. Return of the Hero  

Chris has difficulty coming to terms with the fact that Tom has gone. When Geoffry Standish, a brash new doctor from the city, arrives she finds it even more difficult working at the RFDS. Geoff drinks when he is on duty. Later it emerges he too is struggling to come to terms with personal loss: his wife died of cancer and he holds himself responsible for not spotting the illness and failing to cure her. A man called Les Foster is suffering from HIV. When it develops in to full blown AIDS, the people of Coopers Crossing have problems accepting some one they know and respect is homosexual.

18. Eye of the Beholder  

Emma trades her mechanic overalls for a ball grown when Violet manages to persuade her to enter the Miss Coopers Crossing beauty contest. The competition is set to be tough though as she is up against the local favourite Melissa Cumberland-Brown. Meanwhile Kate finds herself helping Baxter out of a difficult situation. After a clinic run to his property, Baxter and Kate go out riding. However there is a storm and he is struck by lightning. After he has a seiezure he is convinced he has suffered an epileptic attack. He is quite concerned as he reveals his brother died of epilepsy. Only further tests will reveal if his concerns are well founded.

19. Like A Death In The Family  

Nancy finds herself on the operating table when Geoff finds she has cancer of the uterus. Sharon returns from Sydney to help her through. When Geoff recommends Nancy has a full hysterectomy, Vic and Nancy begin rowing: she doesn't want to have the operation. Sharon is caught in the middle of their arguing and is desperate for Nancy to have the operation. Meanwhile Baxter does a dirty business deal when the Morgans are forced to sell their property.

20. Million Acre Prison  

Chris is called out on an emergency when a young boy is dying because of a gun shot wound. However when they are unable to return to the Crossing because of the poor weather conditions, a tragedy unfolds and Chris is required to perform an autopsy. Kate is livid when Geoff receives a job offer from a clinic in Sydney. Kate, along with the rest of the residents of Coopers Crossing, assume he is about to leave them as he is too bored of living in the outback. Can Violet, Kate and the others persuade him to stay?

21. Fearless Frank  

New relief pilot, 'Fearless Frank Watson' causes problems for the RFDS. Gibbo is excited about getting some long over due vacation time and is pleased the RFDS have managed to get a relief pilot. However mechanical faults with his car mean that he is forced to remain in the Crossing longer than he'd like. New pilot Frank goes against protocol and Chris' instructions and flies out to Val, a hypochondriac woman he is smitten with. Unfortunately he falls ill during the return flight with stomach pains. After a short stint in hospital he has his pilots license revoked. However he is determined to continue flying unless a better offer of employment arises. Now that Nancy has recovered from her surgery Sharon decides to return to Sydney and continue her studies but Vic and Nancy are not happy about having to say goodbye to her again.

22. Forgiveness  

Geoff and Jack go to the aid of Sarah, a woman who believes she has a stalker who spies on her at night while her husband is away working. She is the hot topic of debate though as many people believe Sarah is simply paranoid. Geoff ends up staying at the property at night to put her mind at rest only to be confronted by Sarah's jealous husband the following morning. When she ends up shooting someone one night it emerges there is more to it than at first appeared. Meanwhile, Kate is livid with Baxter after he cancels a date with her. Later she sees him in Broken Hill dining with a glamorous woman and she makes it clear that she wants nothing more to do with him.

23. Acceptance  

Jack has a job keeping the disorderly Carbine and Pharlap Cochrane out of the Crossing. Despite his warnings they arrive anyway and manage to convince Vic to go on a gold mining hunt with them. However, tragedy strikes when they fail to set the Semtex off properly and they are injured when the mine blows up. After a short stay in hospital, it's not too long before they are fighting down at the pub. Fortunately Chris is on hand to prevent further injury. Meanwhile, Geoff helps a girl who has a brain tumour. She doesn't want to stay in hospital and die but Geoff is loathed to let her leave.

24. The Show Goes On  

There is great excitement in the air when a travelling theatre company comes to town. But en-route the actors are involved in a car accident and director / actor Rick breaks his leg. The promotions manager is aggressive and curt with the folk of Coopers Crossing and they take an instant dislike to him. When he runs off with all the ticket money, they despise him. The locals pull together to help out and Joe agrees to perform in Rick's place. The play is a success and Joe is offered alternative employment. There is more bad news for Rick though as whilst in hospital Chris diagnoses him with a potentially fatal disease. The only way he can be cured is though going to Sydney for treatment but he does not want to leave the troupe.

25. To The Rescue (1)  

Two well known miscreants plague the RFDS doctors for drugs. Their plan is to sell them to school children. When Kate warns Geoff against giving them any, the thieves take greater risks to get what they want. Jack tries to stop them but ends up being injured himself. When one of them is hurt and needs medical attention they are left wishing they had not sold all of the drugs they could get their hands on. Meanwhile Violet has a fraught time organising the Queen of The Outback competition. Emma is unhappy about Violet's choice of evening wear and threatens to resign and it's up to Chris to help cool things down. However things go from bad to worse when the venue is not prepared and the band is not to Violet's liking. Despite Chris' efforts to help out, Violet blames her for everything that has happened.

26. Into The Future (2)  

Tragedy strikes when there is a plane crash. Baxter, Chris, Gibbo and too drunk to fly pilot Ted are in a celebratory mood as they fly back from Windoona where Emma has just been crowned Queen of The Out Back but the mood quickly turns sour when there is engine trouble and the plane catches alight. Following an emergency landing, everyone seems to be alright. However, Gibbo is fatally injured. Despite operating on him, he later dies from a cardiac arrest. Meanwhile the District has a newly elected M.P.:George Baxter.