- Written By: S.E. Smith
- Edited By: C. Wilborn
- Last Modified Date: 02 February 2012
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2003-2012 Conjecture Corporation
The Enola Gay is an aircraft that was famously used to drop the atomic weapon on Hiroshima, Japan, on 6 August 1945. After the bombing, the plane flew only one other combat mission, a scouting mission to prepare for the atomic bombing of Nagasaki, before being preserved at the Smithsonian Institution as a historic artifact. Today, the restored Enola Gay can be viewed at the National Air and Space Museum.
This B-29 Superfortress bomber was manufactured at Lockheed Martin's Omaha plant. It was selected along with a group of other aircraft for modifications designed to allow it to carry a nuclear weapon while flying above antiaircraft guns. This modification mission, codenamed "Silverplate," turned out a number of aircraft equipped to handle nuclear weapons. When completed, the plane measured 99 feet (30.2 meters) long and had a wingspan of 141.25 feet (43 meters).
When the order was given to drop the atomic bomb on Hiroshima on 5 August 1945, Captain Paul Tibbets, the pilot in charge, decided to rename the plane. He christened it after his mother, Enola Gay Tibbets. The plane took off from Tinian, in the Marianas Islands, with a 12 man crew aboard, accompanied by The Great Artiste and Necessary Evil. Notably, the Enola Gay's bombing mission over Hiroshima was considered a textbook perfect mission, proceeding precisely as planned and scheduled.
In addition to Captain Tibbets, the crew included Captain Robert A. Lewis as copilot, Captain Theodore van Kirk as navigator, and Major Thomas Ferebee as bombardier. Technical Sergeant Wyatt E. Duzenberry was flight engineer and Sergeant Robert S. Shumard was assistant flight engineer. Lieutenant Jacob Beser handled radar countermeasures, while Sergeant Joe S. Stiborik was radar operator, and the VHF radio operator was Private First Class Richard H. Nelson. The assistant weaponeer was Second Lieutenant Morris R. Jeppson, Technical Sergeant George R. Caron was tail gunner, and P. Captain William S. Parsons of the United States Navy was seconded to the mission as the weaponeer because he had nuclear training.
For its role in the bombing of Japan, the Enola Gay has become famous. Tibbets later expressed some regret for naming the aircraft after his mother. Many members of the crew were interviewed about their experiences on board the Enola Gay and several of them also wrote about the Hiroshima mission and their role in it. Models of the bomb dropped by the Enola Gay, known as "Little Boy," are on display in several locations in the United States.
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JimmyT
Post 4 |
@Emilski - There is still debate over the bombings, and to be honest I see it as being infamous, despite if it were necessary to end the war. The killing of a quarter million civilians with a bomb makes this plane both famous or infamous depending on how one wants to glorify the event or understand the severity of it. What I would like to know is if the pilots of the plane felt any regret in carrying out their mission. I understand it may have been necessary to end the war, but knowing that you had a hand in directly killing that many innocent people makes one wonder how someone would handle that. |
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Emilski
Post 3 |
@kentuckycat - It is entirely possible that this was the only mission real mission the Enola Gay was flown in. The article does say it was used in scouting for Nagasaki, but does not specify if the Hiroshima bombing was its maiden flight. If this plane really did only take the air in combat twice I find it quite amazing that the two missions that it went on were so important in world history. In a way since this plane was directly involved in both the atomic bombings at Hiroshima and Nagasaki, I would think that an argument could be made that this is the most famous combat plane in history, or even the most infamous depending how one looks at it. I would go the infamous route because this plane was used in the deaths of a quarter million people and helped jump start the Cold War. The Atomic bomb may have been seen as a necessity to end the war, but one cannot argue that the act was infamous, even if it were maybe necessary. |
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kentuckycat
Post 2 |
@TreeMan - Very interesting and I will have to say I do not blame you for attempting to touch this famous plane. This plane is so famous for only one mission and I never hear of any other missions that it was sent on. I would think that with such a plane that it would have been flown on other missions during the war besides dropping the bomb on Hiroshima, but I have not once heard a story of such. I know the one mission that people talk about is one of the biggest events in world history, but is it possible that this was the only mission the plane flew? |
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TreeMan
Post 1 |
I had always wanted to see the Enola Gay simply because of its role in not just American, but world history. Most people think that this plane is in the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum on the National Mall in Washington DC, but that is not a case and it is somewhat misleading. Because of the size of the plane, even though it is not huge compared to other planes, it has to be kept at the National Air and Space Museum, which is just outside of the city. If anyone wants to go there and see the Enola Gay it is literally right next to the catwalk in the main building and is so close that you can literally tough this famous plane. I would not recommend touching the plane however, as I got yelled at by a guard for doing so. |
