 In 1924, he joined the Royal Australian Naval College as a cadet midshipman.He served in the Second World War initially in command of the sloop HMAS "Yarra", in which he saw action off the coast of Shatt al-Arab in Iraq in May 1941 and for which role he was mentioned in despatches.For his services in the War against Persia in August 1941 he was awarded the Distinguished Service Order.