Joey
Soldier: Captain Elliot Frederick (Tab) Pflaum

Tab was born in 1892 at Blumberg, now Birdwood, in the Adelaide Hills. His German parents, Theodore and Mary Pflaum, had a family of fourteen children of which Tab was the eighth child and second oldest son. He was educated at Prince Alfred College in Adelaide, where he was given his nickname.

In 1911 he moved from the family business, the Birdwood Flour Mill, to Loxton as a stock and station agent. He enlisted for active service at age 23, on 24th August 1915, joining the 12th Reinforcement of the 9th Light Horse Regiment.

On the 18th November 1915 he left for overseas with two of his younger brothers, Theodore and Raymond, on the HMAS Geelong, having been recently engaged to Clara Elvira (Ellie) Drabsch of Loxton. The three brothers arrived at the Suez Canal in mid-December, where Tab’s group disembarked for Cairo, leaving his brothers to undergo further training nearby. He joined his unit at the end of December, which had arrived back in Egypt following the evacuation of the Gallipoli Peninsula.

He transferred to the Australian Flying Corps (AFC) as Second Aircraft Mechanic on 14th December 1916, and later was sent by ship to England for flying training. He graduated as Second Lieutenant on the 18th October 1917. He was immediately assigned to the new Australian Squadron, the 4th Squadron AFC, which was equipped with Sopwith Camels. They left for France on 18th December 1917, and carried out reconnaissance missions in the north of France in the area of St Omer and Bruay. One of Tab’s closest friends was Captain Harry Cobby, the most highly decorated pilot in the AFC.

There are many stories of their exploits. On March 20th 1918 ten aircraft including Cobby and Tab took off at 8am through heavy fog to make a reconnaissance of an area around Bapaume, as there was a large German ground push expected in the coming days. Three red Albatross aircraft of the famous Richthofen Circus were spotted soon after take-off but they did not see the Australians because of the mist. More aircraft were encountered and an all-in dog fight took place in and out of the fog. Tab was busy at first, keeping out of the line of fire of two enemy aircraft chasing him, and then managed to get onto the tail of one of them, firing continuously. Fortunately all aircraft returned to base, but it might have been a different story if the leading Albatross planes, including Barron Manfred Van Richthofen (the Red Baron) had been involved in the fight.

In April 1918, after 3 months and 70 hours combat flying Tab was posted back to England as a flying instructor. While in France he was officially credited with destroying three enemy aircraft. Tab joined the 8th (training) Squadron, AFC on 11th April 1918, and was stationed at Leighterton in Gloucestershire. On the 15th April he was promoted to the rank of Temporary Captain, and he became a Captain a year later on 15th July 1919. 

As an instructor Tab had two personal aircraft, a 2-seater Avro 504K, and a Sopwith Camel. Both were painted white so that young pilots in mock dog-fights could distinguish the instructor’s plane. At different times Tab had fitted a small kangaroo mascot called “Joey”, made from leather and stuffed with horse-hair, onto both of these aircraft. “Joey” sat on top of the petrol cap just behind the rear seat. It was attached to the plane only by a long thin steel spike welded to the petrol cap, which extended up through the length of the mascot, and kept it in place during aerial manoeuvres.

The Avro was distinctively marked with the letters TAB on the side. The prominent display of his nickname was the result of an early morning raid by the instructors on the sleeping quarters of the Commanding Officer. Unable to positively identify the aircraft, the CO ordered this step to discourage repetition and promote sounder sleep!

At the end of hostilities in December 1918, Tab was again posted overseas with the 4th Squadron. This time it was to Cologne in Germany to assist with the handing over of German aircraft to the allies.

Along with Harry Cobby, Tab returned to Australia on the ship Kaiser-i-Hind in May 1919, not quite five years after setting out with his two brothers. Sadly his brothers did not return. Ray was killed at the battle of Fromelles in 1916, and Theo at Polygon Wood in Flanders in 1917. Tab received the 1914/15 Star, the British War Medal and the Victory Medal, and was officially discharged on 6th August 1919. He married Ellie, who had been waiting for him all this time, in June 1920. Tab then lived most of his life in Loxton, becoming a successful manager of Goldsborough Mort Pty Ltd.

Tab brought “Joey” home with him, and this small kangaroo mascot has been in the Pflaum family ever since. It had pride of place in the bedroom of Tab’s son, John Pflaum, and probably inspired John to join the RAAF in the last years of WW2. After training in Australia, John was transferred at the end of the war to 1st Tactical Air Force RAAF based in the Pacific. Sadly he was killed as his Kittyhawk crashed on take-off at the American Air Force Base at Zamboanga on Mindarao Island in the Phillipines, on the 15th November 1945. He was just 20 years old.

“Joey” passed to Tab’s daughter Joan when he died in 1976, and then to his grandson, John in 1995. “Joey” remains a very important symbol for the Pflaum family, and is an inspiration to Tab’s descendants. This small mascot, now almost 100 years old, is a tangible reminder of not only a different time in history, of suffering and sacrifice, of the futility of war, but also a perseverance to overcome adversity. The story of the Pflaum family is not a unique one but represents at a very personal level, the sense of what families of that generation experienced, which is forever part of our Australian heritage.

Written by John Bourne
Grandson
Owner of Joey

In the exhibition a book accompanied the mascot Joey titled: Men & Machines of the Australian Flying Corps 1914 - 19, Author: Charles Schaedel.
The page was open at a page showing Captain Pflaum with his Sopwith Camel Serial C123 whilst instructing at Leighterton, United Kingdom. The page is signed by Captain Elliot Frederick (Tab) Pflaum.

Images:
Artlab Conservator: Justin Gare, Senior Objects Conservator
1. Captain Elliot Frederick (Tab) Pflaum.
2. A close-up of “Joey” in full flight.
3. Captain Pflaum’s preparing for take-off with “Joey” in place.
4. Justin repaired the tail with the aid of a stainless steel pin and adhesive. The paint loss was in-painted and Joey’s dignity was now restored!