75 Years Ago: The Flight of the Enola Gay | Natnal Air and Space Mm

Contents:

• THE REAL MEANG BEHD THE NAME ENOLA GAY, THE PLANE THAT DROPPED THE FIRST ATOMIC BOMB
• THE ENOLA GAY'S HISTORY LIV ON
• THE INLIBLE ENOLA GAY
• THE CREW OF THE ENOLA GAY ON DROPPG THE ATOMIC BOMB
• THE SMHSONIAN’S DECISN TO EXHIB THE ‘ENOLA GAY’
• HIROSHIMA’S ENOLA GAY RRIED 12 MEN, HOPE AND THE WORLD’S ADLIT WEAPON
• HERE’S WHY THE PILOT OF ENOLA GAY HAD NO REGRETS ABOUT DROPPG THE FIRST ATOM BOMB
• PILOT OF ENOLA GAY HAD NO REGRETS FOR HIROSHIMA
• HERE'S WHAT THE CREW OF THE B-29 BOMBER ENOLA GAY SAW AFTER DROPPG THE FIRST ATOMIC BOMB HISTORY
• ENOLA GAY: WHAT EXACTLY WAS IT AND WHO USED IT?
• CONTROVERSY OVER THE ENOLA GAY EXHIBN
• IN 1955 AN AMERIN TV SHOW DID THE UNTHKABLE: IT AMBHED A HIROSHIMA SURVIVOR WH AN ENOLA GAY PILOT

THE REAL MEANG BEHD THE NAME ENOLA GAY, THE PLANE THAT DROPPED THE FIRST ATOMIC BOMB

However, several plane nam of the World War II-era are known exclively by their name, cludg the famo Enola Gay, a B-29 bomber that was ed to drop an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan (via Branni). Yet the Enola Gay, another animate object, had a dark tentn — the vice was schled to drop an atomic bomb on an enemy target. It's important to note that durg the war, not many plan which were mass-produced were given as much fanfare, so the Enola Gay stood out om the pack.

Pilot Pl Tibbets nam Enola Gay.

THE ENOLA GAY'S HISTORY LIV ON

On Augt 5, 1945, the 29-year-old Tibbets formally named his B-29 "Enola Gay" after his mother (née Haggard).

THE INLIBLE ENOLA GAY

The Enola Gay name liv on. In 1995, the Natnal Air and Space Mm hosted a ntroversial exhib of the Enola Gay to mark the 50th anniversary of the end of WWII. The fully reassembled Enola Gay is now on display permanent display at the Natnal Air and Space Mm's Steven F.

THE CREW OF THE ENOLA GAY ON DROPPG THE ATOMIC BOMB

Seventy-five years ago, the Uned Stat dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, brgg an end to a long and vastatg World War II and makg the Enola Gay, the B-29 that livered , one of the most famo history. The Enola Gay, known only as No.

He handpicked the plane the night before the missn, to the surprise of s crew, and had his mother’s name -- Enola Gay -- pated on s si. 6, 1945, the Enola Gay took off for Hiroshima, an important Japane ary center.

It was a moment for which none of the Enola Gay’s crew -- away by then, but still rocked by the blast -- was que prepared. What some don’t know is that the Enola Gay flew that missn, too.

THE SMHSONIAN’S DECISN TO EXHIB THE ‘ENOLA GAY’

Some fly ahead to check the weather to see what ’s like at the actual target, and Enola Gay was part of that for Nagasaki, " Kney said.

After the bombgs and the war’s quick end, the Enola Gay remaed wh the Army Air Forc, takg part the Biki Atoll atomic tts before beg shipped to the Smhsonian 1960.

The origal patg of the words “Enola Gay” n still be seen on s si.

HIROSHIMA’S ENOLA GAY RRIED 12 MEN, HOPE AND THE WORLD’S ADLIT WEAPON

While no members of the crew that flew the Enola Gay rema to tell s story, the aircraft liv on for visors. "Enola Gay is a regnized airplane of World War II, and people want to see , " Kney said.

"They want to see the spachip Disvery, they want to see the [SR-71] Blackbird, and they want to see the Enola Gay. A sgle airplane livered the new weapon of mass stctn—the Enola Gay.

HERE’S WHY THE PILOT OF ENOLA GAY HAD NO REGRETS ABOUT DROPPG THE FIRST ATOM BOMB

On permanent display at the Natnal Air and Space Mm’s Udvar-Hazy Center Chantilly, Virgia, the Enola Gay was donated to the Smhsonian Instutn by the U. The ckp of the B-29 Superfortrs Enola Gay. Although missg a few parts, the Enola Gay is now rtored so generatns of Amerins n see the plane that left an lible mark the annals of time.

But you have to be that wh the missn of the Enola Gay, which brgs the dimensn of the role of technology war. As lead pilot, he named the Enola Gay after his mother.

As the Enola Gay ma s fal approach to Hiroshima that day, Tibbets ascend to 31, 000 feet, then turned over ntrols to Ferebee.

PILOT OF ENOLA GAY HAD NO REGRETS FOR HIROSHIMA

The Enola Gay was then buffeted vlently when stck by two shock wav—one direct and the other reflected om the ground.

HERE'S WHAT THE CREW OF THE B-29 BOMBER ENOLA GAY SAW AFTER DROPPG THE FIRST ATOMIC BOMB HISTORY

This was two plan—the Enola Gay and the backup plane. In 1995, a 50th anniversary exhibn of the end of World War II, anized by curators and the director at the Natnal Air and Space Mm and displayg the felage of the Enola Gay, met wh unprecented cricism after veterans groups cricized the exhibn’s script for beg overly sympathetic to the Japane and the mm’s historians for beg misleadg and unpatrtic.

ENOLA GAY: WHAT EXACTLY WAS IT AND WHO USED IT?

The Enola Gay was the bt aircraft of s era, but the velopment of that technology me wh a price. When the rtored Enola Gay went on permanent display 2003 at the Udvar-Hazy Center, attracted que a b of attentn.

CONTROVERSY OVER THE ENOLA GAY EXHIBN

The rtored Enola Gay is now on view at the Smhsonian's Udvar-Hazy Center Chantilly, Virgia.

For years after the war, the crew of the Enola Gay never wavered their belief they did what they had to do. On Augt 6, 1945, the B-29 bomber Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on the cy of Hiroshima.

"Colonel Ferebee died Florida 2000, at the age of Air Force radar specialist Jab Ber was the only man who served on both the Enola Gay the Hiroshima bombg missn and the Bock's Car three days later when s crew bombed Nagasaki. "Stiborik died of a heart attack 1984 at age Jeppson was only 23 years old when he was assigned to acpany the atomic bomb on the Enola Gay.

IN 1955 AN AMERIN TV SHOW DID THE UNTHKABLE: IT AMBHED A HIROSHIMA SURVIVOR WH AN ENOLA GAY PILOT

Richard Nelson was the youngt of the Enola Gay crew. "Nelson died om emphysema 2003 at age Gay tail gunner Bob Caron wrote a book about the missn lled Fire of a Thoand Suns.