…in South Australia aged 96.
Kruse and his wife Valma were the subject of John Heyer's 1954 prize-winning film "The Back of Beyond''. He also featured in a film about the restoration of his original mail truck, a Leyland Badger, and its commemorative mail run in 1999.
His Leyland Badger, which he used to deliver the mail from 1936 until it broke down in 1957, remains on display at the National Motor Museum. Kruse delivered the mail and supplies every fortnight to stations between Marree and Birdsville.
Tom Kruse was awarded an MBE in 1955 for services to the community in the outback. In 2000 he was inducted into the National Transport Hall of Fame and in 2003 he was officially acknowledged as an Outback Legend by Australian Geographic magazine.