When 2 Commando Coy Skydivers Club was formed in 1960, Bill applied to join the club.   As a paratrooper with the 1st Royal Victorian Regiment, he expected that he would be accepted with open arms.   However, army red tape prevented him from joining and it also prevented club members from participating in civilian display jumps.   The latter brought about the formation of Southern Cross Skydivers so that club members could carry out displays and Bill joined Southern Cross Skydivers immediately.   He formed 1 RVR Parachute Club and operated it for some time.

Bill was enthusiastic about all phases of parachuting and skydiving and was Australian Style Champion 1962.

He was Team Captain of the three person 1962 Australian Parachute Team that participated in the 6th World Parachuting Championships at Orange, Massachusetts, USA and a member of the 1964 Australian Parachute Team at the 7th World Parachuting Championships in Leutkirch, West Germany.

While in the USA in 1962, Bill visited with the United States Army Team at Fort Bragg, North Carolina.   There he learned that if he had his CO's approval he could participate in US Army Courses.   Armed with this knowledge, when about to leave for Leutkirch in 1964, Bill sought his CO's written approval to carry out courses while overseas.   Having tried unsuccessfully himself to participate in army courses in the United Kingdom and envisaging that this was where Bill wanted to join army courses, the CO gave Bill his written approval.

Earlier in 1964 he had entered into a partnership with Claude Gillard on a venture to develop Australia's first parachute centre and Labertouche Sport Parachute Centre was born.   

During the Leutkirch Championships, Bill renewed his acquaintance with the US Army Team and wangled a flight to USA with the team on a military C-130.   On arrival at Fort Bragg, he produced his approval and was accepted on course after course with the Golden Knights; HALO, Jumpmaster and Rigging Courses, etc.   On weekends he jumped with the Golden Knights Display Team into baseball diamonds, football parks, etc. He also spent a lot of time with the Golden Knights competition team.

While in the USA he arranged a Security Parachute Co. dealership for Claude's Southern Cross Parachutes and had a Crossbow Piggyback rig dispatched to Australia.   The rig was put on display and used to train packers and riggers to service the revolutionary system.   Bill arrived home in time to be the first to jump it and unfortunately had a malfunction on the first jump, damaging the canopy extensively.  It was somewhat embarrassing as the manufacturer was advertising the system in the USA as the parachute with 100% reliability with no malfunctions recorded.    It was some time before the first order of Crossbow canopies arrived in Australia and in the mean time, the canopy had a 100% malfunction rate in this country.

Bill was a member of the Military and Naval Club in Melbourne and he and Claude had dinner at the Club once a week.   In addition to the great food and service the contacts made at the Club were to prove useful later.

In 1966, Bill saw an opportunity for advancement in his military status by volunteering for service in Vietnam.   He made arrangements with Claude to be absent from the businesses for a year and was on his way.   In Vietnam he was given a field promotion to Major, took command of a unit and made a name for himself as "a resourceful commander with a reputation for lifting the moral of his troops".   He showed a certain amount of entrepreneurial ability in dealing with the US Military.  

On his return to Australia from an extended tour; Bill was offered command of the Army Parachute Training School at Williamtown NSW if he chose to accept a commission in the regular army.   After discussing it with Claude, he accepted the army's offer and was preparing for the transfer when he was killed in a road accident while riding as a passenger in a car on the way home from a dropzone in Queensland.

Death cut off many advancements planned by Bill in the relationship between civilian and military operations.  It was some years afterward that the present close cooperation of the APF and the Military came about.