|
Aug
2, 1918 - Jul 25, 1986 |
Enlistment:
12-14-43
Entry into Active Service: 1-12-44
Place of Entry: Fort Dix, New Jersey
Battles and Campaigns:
Air Offensive Japan
Eastern Mandates
Western Pacific
Decorations and Citations:
Good Conduct Medal
American Theatre Ribbon
A-P Ribbon w/3 Bronze Stars
WWII Victory Medal
Service Schools Attended:
3705 BU Lowry Field, Colorado
Power Operated Turrets & Gunsight Specialists (Mechanic)
Overseas Service:
Guam, 2-18-45 to 9-20-45
“Ted”
enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1943. His time in
the Air Corps was one of the defining experiences
of his life. He wore his Army boots to do yard work
well into the fifties, and as a kid I remember reluctantly
being awakened on Saturday mornings to the booming
call of “All out, 39, up and at ‘em.”
My
dad wasn’t one to reminisce, but I do recall
some funny stories he told. One such story was about
the time a Japanese soldier snuck on base to surrender,
but had the good sense to wait until a G.I. in a latrine
had his pants down around his ankles before the enemy
soldier felt it was safe enough to confront him. And
another story about the time a B-29 with locked landing
gear was forced to make a belly landing… with
a bomb bay full of scotch … flooding the field.
And how, to break the boredom, they used to hold rat-throwing
contests, hurling dead rats by the tail to see who
could toss the farthest.
On
the serious side, I recall my dad telling me how surprised
and incredulous he and his buddies were when they
heard about the dropping of the atomic bomb. Security
had been so tight that neither he nor anyone he knew
with the B-29s had suspected such a weapon existed.
Ted
enlisted with dreams of flying, but a peripheral vision
problem disqualified him. He was assigned to a Central
Fire Control ground crew. He told me that he spent
most of his time helping to load bombs because the
B-29 turrets needed minimal maintenance. The Zero,
it seems, had neither the ceiling nor speed to make
more than a single pass at the Superfortress.
He did have one opportunity to fly. The pilot of his
first plane promised some informal, unofficial lessons
following his next mission. Tragically, the plane
never returned.
After
the war, Ted took advantage of the G.I. Bill and studied
at Columbia University in New York and became an accountant.
Participation
in the VFW became a lifelong activity. He served several
times as Commander of the Mohr-Christie Post #158
in Hoboken, N.J. Rain or shine, he never missed decorating
graves on Memorial Day.
In
1939 he married his high school sweetheart, Eileen
Cecilia Burke. They remained together until her death
in 1968. They had one son, Gerald. In 1969 he married
Maria Antonia Sirotak. He passed away of heart failure
on July 25, 1986.
Theodore
Pflugh, (1st row left) and his comrades in Hawaii
enroute to Guam. |
Theodore
Pflugh, (3rd from left) and his comrades in
Hawaii enroute to Guam. |
unknown
(left) and "Ted" Pflugh on Guam |