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64-463: The bridge was built in 1932 for street cars. Its approximately 400 foot length spans the Honkawa and Motoyasu rivers. The Enola Gay targeted the bridge, releasing the bomb once it was within its sights. The bomb deviated from its intended target, missing the bridge by 800 feet. While not destroyed by the atomic blast, the bridge sustained significant damage. Following the explosion, a person who survived

128-525: A base in the Marianas Islands to drop on the city of Hiroshima, Japan, the first atomic bomb to be used in warfare. Flying 1500 miles over open water to the coast of Japan, they manned their assigned positions and crossed the island of Shikoku and the Inland Sea. They constantly faced the danger of being hit by anti-aircraft fire, enemy fighters, or suffering mechanical or other failures which would intensify

192-585: A former B-52 pilot with the Strategic Air Command , became director of the National Air and Space Museum, and he made the Enola Gay ' s restoration a priority. Looking at the aircraft, Tibbets recalled, was a "sad meeting. [My] fond memories, and I don't mean the dropping of the bomb, were the numerous occasions I flew the airplane ... I pushed it very, very hard and it never failed me ... It

256-455: A name for the plane, Tibbets later recalled that: ... my thoughts turned at this point to my courageous red-haired mother, whose quiet confidence had been a source of strength to me since boyhood, and particularly during the soul-searching period when I decided to give up a medical career to become a military pilot. At a time when Dad had thought I had lost my marbles, she had taken my side and said, "I know you will be all right, son." In

320-464: A number of locations. It was at Davis-Monthan from 1 September 1946 until 3 July 1949, when it was flown to Orchard Place Air Field , Park Ridge, Illinois , by Tibbets for acceptance by the Smithsonian. It was moved to Pyote Air Force Base , Texas, on 12 January 1952, and then to Andrews Air Force Base , Maryland, on 2 December 1953, because the Smithsonian had no storage space for the aircraft. It

384-569: A replica of the B-29 flew overhead. Van Kirk appeared and signed books at the Vectren Dayton Air Show on July 8, 2012. Van Kirk appeared at the Marietta Museum of History on August 11–12, 2012. He signed his book, My True Course , from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday at the museum's Aviation Wing. On Saturday, August 11 at 4 p.m., he gave a rare address at the main wing of

448-823: A second atomic bomb on Nagasaki, Japan. Enola Gay flew as the advance weather reconnaissance aircraft that day. A third B-29, The Great Artiste , flew as an observation aircraft on both missions. Transferred from the U.S. Air Force Wingspan: 43 metres (141 feet 1 inch) Length:30.2 m (99 ft) Height: 9 metres (29 feet 6 inches) Weight, empty: 32,580 kg (71,830 lb) Weight, gross: 63,504 kg (140,002 lb) Top speed: 546 km/h (339 mph) Engines: 4 Wright R-3350-57 Cyclone turbo-supercharged radials, 2,200 hp Crew: 12 (Hiroshima mission) Armament: two .50 caliber machine guns Ordnance: Little Boy atomic bomb Manufacturer: Martin Co., Omaha, Nebraska, 1945 A19500100000 The display of

512-467: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . This article about a bridge in Japan is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Enola Gay The Enola Gay ( / ə ˈ n oʊ l ə / ) is a Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber , named after Enola Gay Tibbets , the mother of the pilot, Colonel Paul Tibbets . On 6 August 1945, during the final stages of World War II , it became

576-544: The 509th Composite Group at Wendover Field , Utah, in late 1944. The group flew the Boeing B-29 Superfortress , with Tibbets as commander and Van Kirk as the group navigator. From November 1944 to June 1945 they trained continually for the first atomic bomb drop, which occurred 6 August 1945. The thirteen-hour mission to Hiroshima began at 02:45 hrs in the morning Tinian time. By the time they rendezvoused with their accompanying B-29s at 0607 hrs over Iwo Jima ,

640-527: The 6th Bombardment Group as a security measure and had its Victor number changed to 82 to avoid misidentification with actual 6th Bombardment Group aircraft. During July, the bomber made eight practice or training flights and flew two missions, on 24 and 26 July, to drop pumpkin bombs on industrial targets at Kobe and Nagoya . Enola Gay was used on 31 July on a rehearsal flight for the actual mission. The partially assembled Little Boy gun-type fission weapon L-11, weighing 10,000 pounds (4,500 kg),

704-663: The Army Air Force Aviation Cadet Program in October 1941. On 1 April 1942, he received both his commission and navigator wings and transferred to the 97th Bomb Group , the first operational Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress unit in England. The crew of the "Red Gremlin" also included pilot Paul Tibbets and bombardier Tom Ferebee . Van Kirk would later fly with these men on the Hiroshima mission. From August to October 1942,

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768-675: The Enola Gay back to the United States, arriving at the 509th's new base at Roswell Army Air Field , New Mexico , on 8 November. On 29 April 1946, Enola Gay left Roswell as part of the Operation Crossroads nuclear weapons tests in the Pacific. It flew to Kwajalein Atoll on 1 May. It was not chosen to make the test drop at Bikini Atoll and left Kwajalein on 1 July, the date of the test, reaching Fairfield-Suisun Army Air Field , California,

832-515: The Enola Gay without reference to the historical context of World War II, the Cold War, or the development and deployment of nuclear weapons aroused controversy. A petition from a group calling themselves the Committee for a National Discussion of Nuclear History and Current Policy bemoaned the display of Enola Gay as a technological achievement, which it described as an "extraordinary callousness toward

896-544: The Enola Gay . Of mission commander Parsons, it was said: "There is no one more responsible for getting this bomb out of the laboratory and into some form useful for combat operations than Captain Parsons, by his plain genius in the ordnance business." For the Nagasaki mission, Enola Gay was flown by Crew B-10, normally assigned to Up An' Atom : Source: Campbell, 2005, pp. 134, 191–192. On 6 November 1945, Lewis flew

960-552: The Manhattan Project , Major General Leslie R. Groves Jr. , wanted the event recorded for posterity, so the takeoff was illuminated by floodlights. When he wanted to taxi, Tibbets leaned out the window to direct the bystanders out of the way. On request, he gave a friendly wave for the cameras. After leaving Tinian, the three aircraft made their way separately to Iwo Jima , where they rendezvoused at 2,440 meters (8,010 ft) and set course for Japan. The aircraft arrived over

1024-751: The National Mall , for the bombing's 50th anniversary in 1995, amid controversy. Since 2003, the entire restored B-29 has been on display at NASM's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center . The last survivor of its crew, Theodore Van Kirk , died on 28 July 2014 at the age of 93. The Enola Gay (Model number B-29-45-MO, Serial number 44-86292, Victor number 82) was built by the Glenn L. Martin Company (later part of Lockheed Martin ) at its bomber plant in Bellevue, Nebraska , located at Offutt Field, now Offutt Air Force Base . The bomber

1088-724: The Silver Star , the Distinguished Flying Cross , and 15 Air Medals . Van Kirk went on to receive his Bachelor and Master of Science degrees in Chemical Engineering from Bucknell University in 1949 and 1950. For the next 35 years, he held various technical and managerial positions in research and marketing with DuPont . Dutch Van Kirk appeared April 9–10, 2005 at the MacDill Air Force Base Air Fest, Tampa, FL, filling in for scheduled Paul Tibbets, who

1152-467: The first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb in warfare . The bomb, code-named " Little Boy ", was targeted at the city of Hiroshima , Japan, and destroyed about three-quarters of the city. Enola Gay participated in the second nuclear attack as the weather reconnaissance aircraft for the primary target of Kokura . Clouds and drifting smoke resulted in Nagasaki , a secondary target, being bombed instead. After

1216-402: The B-29 found its niche on the other side of the globe. In the Pacific, B-29s delivered a variety of aerial weapons: conventional bombs, incendiary bombs, mines, and two nuclear weapons. On 6 August 1945, this Martin-built B-29-45-MO dropped the first atomic weapon used in combat on Hiroshima, Japan. Three days later, Bockscar (on display at the U.S. Air Force Museum near Dayton, Ohio) dropped

1280-426: The Hiroshima mission, the Nagasaki mission has been described as tactically botched, although the mission did meet its objectives. The crew encountered a number of problems in execution and had very little fuel by the time they landed at the emergency backup landing site Yontan Airfield on Okinawa . Enola Gay ' s crew on 6 August 1945 consisted of 12 men. The crew was: Asterisks denote regular crewmen of

1344-519: The Little Boy took 53 seconds to fall from the aircraft flying at 31,060 feet (9,470 m) to the predetermined detonation height about 1,968 feet (600 m) above the city. Enola Gay traveled 11.5 mi (18.5 km) before it felt the shock waves from the blast. Although buffeted by the shock, neither Enola Gay nor The Great Artiste was damaged. The detonation created a blast equivalent to 15 kilotons of TNT (63 TJ). The U-235 weapon

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1408-505: The aircraft's fuselage, following an earlier incident in which a protester had thrown red paint over the gallery's carpeting. The exhibition closed on 18 May 1998 and the fuselage was returned to the Garber Facility for final restoration. Its restoration work began in 1984, and eventually required 300,000 staff hours. While the fuselage was on display, from 1995 to 1998, work continued on the remaining unrestored components. The aircraft

1472-458: The aircraft. The components were transported to the Smithsonian storage facility at Suitland, Maryland , on 21 July 1961. The Enola Gay remained at Suitland for many years. By the early 1980s, two veterans of the 509th, Don Rehl and his former navigator in the 509th, Frank B. Stewart, began lobbying for the aircraft to be restored and put on display. They enlisted Tibbets and Senator Barry Goldwater in their campaign. In 1983, Walter J. Boyne ,

1536-472: The bomb release was pressed. The bomb cleared, and fell toward the planned objective. They then headed from the area and, despite a minor effect from the detonation, returned safely to their home base. By their courage and skillful performance of duty achieved in outstanding fashion despite the dangers involved in accomplishment of this historic mission, these individuals distinguished themselves by extraordinary achievement and reflect great credit on themselves and

1600-448: The bomber and flew it from Omaha to the 509th base at Wendover Army Air Field , Utah , on 14 June 1945. Thirteen days later, the aircraft left Wendover for Guam , where it received a bomb-bay modification, and flew to North Field , Tinian , on 6 July. It was initially given the Victor (squadron-assigned identification) number 12, but on 1 August, was given the circle R tail markings of

1664-451: The bombings. After attempts to revise the exhibit to meet the satisfaction of competing interest groups, the exhibit was canceled on 30 January 1995. Martin O. Harwit , Director of the National Air and Space Museum, was compelled to resign over the controversy. He later reflected that The dispute was not simply about the atomic bomb. Rather, the dispute was sometimes a symbolic issue in a "culture war" in which many Americans lumped together

1728-495: The bridge crosses the Ōta River just to the north of the island containing the district of Nakajima-cho  [ ja ] . The downstroke of the "T" links the main bridge to the island, and is also the north entrance to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park . 34°23′47″N 132°27′09″E  /  34.3964°N 132.4526°E  / 34.3964; 132.4526 This Japanese history–related article

1792-464: The city's population, were killed by the blast and resultant firestorm, and another 70,000 injured. Out of those killed, 20,000 were soldiers and 20,000 were Korean slave laborers. Enola Gay returned safely to its base on Tinian to great fanfare, touching down at 2:58 pm, after 12 hours 13 minutes. The Great Artiste and Necessary Evil followed at short intervals. Several hundred people, including journalists and photographers, had gathered to watch

1856-522: The crew flew 11 missions out of England. They were the lead aircraft, responsible for group navigation and bombing. In October 1942, they flew General Mark Clark to Gibraltar for his secret North African rendezvous with the French prior to Operation Torch . In November, they ferried General Eisenhower to Gibraltar to command the North African invasion forces. After German reinforcements began pouring into

1920-600: The difference between the practice and real missions, and he replied, "In America, they're not shooting at you!" On September 15, 2013, he spoke for approximately an hour and answered questions about his military service and specifically his role as the navigator on the Enola Gay at the Cavanaugh Flight Museum in Addison, Texas . Afterward, he signed copies of his book, My True Course . Van Kirk died on July 28, 2014. He

1984-408: The early morning hours, just prior to the 6 August mission, Tibbets had a young Army Air Forces maintenance man, Private Nelson Miller, paint the name just under the pilot's window. Regularly assigned aircraft commander Robert A. Lewis was unhappy to be displaced by Tibbets for this important mission and became furious when he arrived at the aircraft on the morning of 6 August to see it painted with

Aioi Bridge - Misplaced Pages Continue

2048-585: The event described witnessing the Aioi Bridge being lifted several meters into the air, only to settle back down onto its foundation afterwards. After the war, the bridge was repaired and remained in service for nearly four decades, before it was replaced in 1983 by a new bridge resembling the original. A surviving portion of a floor girder from the original bridge was subsequently donated to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum . The longer part of

2112-485: The flight log he kept on board the Enola Gay during the atomic bombing of Hiroshima for US$ 358,500 in a public auction. Van Kirk stated he decided to sell the log, because he wanted it to be kept at a museum. The auction house did not reveal the name of the successful bidder, although it said it was a U.S. citizen. In August 1946 Van Kirk completed his service in the Army Air Forces as a Major. His decorations include

2176-419: The group was three hours from the target area. As they approached the target Van Kirk worked closely with the bombardier, Tom Ferebee, to confirm the winds and aimpoint. The bomb fell away from the aircraft at 09:15:17 Tinian time. Van Kirk later participated in Operation Crossroads , the first Bikini Atoll atomic bomb tests. According to the 1995 New York Times interview by Gustav Niebuhr Mr. Van Kirk said he

2240-432: The height of American power was to be celebrated. It was, in this judgment, a crucial symbol of America's "good war", one fought justly for noble purposes at a time when America was united. Those who in any way questioned the bomb's use were, in this emotional framework, the enemies of America. The forward fuselage went on display on 28 June 1995. On 2 July 1995, three people were arrested for throwing ash and human blood on

2304-560: The museum. On September 14, 2013, Major Van Kirk visited and spoke at the Frontiers of Flight Museum in Dallas, Texas. He spoke for about an hour about his experience in the service, and afterwards, he signed copies of his book, My True Course . During this event, Mr. Van Kirk relayed stories about both his practice bombing runs in America and his real bombing missions abroad. He was asked to describe

2368-528: The next day. The decision was made to preserve the Enola Gay , and on 24 July 1946, the aircraft was flown to Davis–Monthan Air Force Base , Tucson, Arizona , in preparation for storage. On 30 August 1946, the title to the aircraft was transferred to the Smithsonian Institution and the Enola Gay was removed from the USAAF inventory. From 1946 to 1961, the Enola Gay was put into temporary storage at

2432-643: The now-famous nose art. Hiroshima was the primary target of the first nuclear bombing mission on 6 August, with Kokura and Nagasaki as alternative targets. Enola Gay , piloted by Tibbets, took off from North Field , in the Northern Mariana Islands , about six hours' flight time from Japan, accompanied by two other B-29s, The Great Artiste , carrying instrumentation, and a then-nameless aircraft later called Necessary Evil , commanded by Captain George Marquardt, to take photographs. The director of

2496-575: The original components. The Enola Gay became the center of a controversy at the Smithsonian Institution when the museum planned to put its fuselage on public display in 1995 as part of an exhibit commemorating the 50th anniversary of the atomic bombing of Hiroshima. The exhibit, The Crossroads: The End of World War II, the Atomic Bomb and the Cold War, was drafted by the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum staff, and arranged around

2560-558: The planes return. Tibbets was the first to disembark and was presented with the Distinguished Service Cross on the spot. The Hiroshima mission was followed by another atomic strike. Originally scheduled for 11 August, it was brought forward by two days to 9 August owing to a forecast of bad weather. This time, a nuclear bomb code-named " Fat Man " was carried by B-29 Bockscar , piloted by Major Charles W. Sweeney . Enola Gay , flown by Captain George Marquardt's Crew B-10,

2624-500: The port of Bizerte , Tunisia , posing a serious threat to Allied strategy, a new mission emerged. On 16 November 1942, the crew led their group in an attack that took the Germans by surprise at Sidi Ahmed Air Base at Bizerte. Van Kirk returned to the U.S. in June 1943 after flying a total of 58 missions overseas. He served as an instructor navigator until reuniting with Tibbets and Ferebee in

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2688-574: The removal of protective armor and gun turrets. Enola Gay was personally selected by Colonel Paul W. Tibbets Jr. , the commander of the 509th Composite Group , on 9 May 1945, while still on the assembly line . The aircraft was accepted by the United States Army Air Forces (USAAF) on 18 May 1945 and assigned to the 393d Bombardment Squadron, Heavy , 509th Composite Group. Crew B-9, commanded by Captain Robert A. Lewis , took delivery of

2752-660: The restored Enola Gay . Critics of the planned exhibit, especially those of the American Legion and the Air Force Association , charged that the exhibit focused too much attention on the Japanese casualties inflicted by the nuclear bomb, rather than on the motives for the bombing or the discussion of the bomb's role in ending the conflict with Japan. The exhibit brought to national attention many long-standing academic and political issues related to retrospective views of

2816-409: The risks of carrying this powerful missile. Throughout the mission the element of hazard from the unknown prevailed, for this was the first time that this bomb, much more destructive than any other in existence, had been dropped from an airplane. The effect it would have on the airplane and these crew members was only to be estimated. Shortly after 0900 they brought the plane in over the city, and at 0915

2880-522: The same sentence. In a war, there are so many questionable things done. Where was the morality in the bombing of Coventry , or the bombing of Dresden , or the Bataan Death March , or the Rape of Nanking , or the bombing of Pearl Harbor ? I believe that when you're in a war, a nation must have the courage to do what it must to win the war with a minimum loss of lives. In October 2007, Van Kirk auctioned off

2944-470: The seeming decline of American power, the difficulties of the domestic economy, the threats in world trade and especially Japan's successes, the loss of domestic jobs, and even changes in American gender roles and shifts in the American family. To a number of Americans, the very people responsible for the script were the people who were changing America. The bomb, representing the end of World War II and suggesting

3008-455: The signage around the aircraft provided only the same succinct technical data as is provided for other aircraft in the museum, without discussion of the controversial issues. It read: Boeing's B-29 Superfortress was the most sophisticated propeller-driven bomber of World War II, and the first bomber to house its crew in pressurized compartments. Although designed to fight in the European theater,

3072-471: The target in clear visibility at 9,855 meters (32,333 ft). Navy Captain William S. "Deak" Parsons of Project Alberta , who was in command of the mission, armed the bomb during the flight to minimize the risks during takeoff. His assistant, Second Lieutenant Morris R. Jeppson , removed the safety devices 30 minutes before reaching the target area. The release at 08:15 (Hiroshima time) went as planned, and

3136-465: The university's Oran W. Nicks Low Speed Wind Tunnel. The lightweight aluminum variable-pitch propeller is powered by a 1,250 kVA electric motor, providing a wind speed up to 200 miles per hour (320 km/h). Two engines were rebuilt at Garber and two at San Diego Air & Space Museum . Some parts and instruments had been removed and could not be located. Replacements were found or fabricated, and marked so that future curators could distinguish them from

3200-713: The victims, indifference to the deep divisions among American citizens about the propriety of these actions, and disregard for the feelings of most of the world's peoples". It attracted signatures from notable figures including historian Gar Alperovitz , social critic Noam Chomsky , whistle blower Daniel Ellsberg , physicist Joseph Rotblat , writer Kurt Vonnegut , producer Norman Lear , actor Martin Sheen and filmmaker Oliver Stone . 38°54′39″N 77°26′39″W  /  38.9108°N 77.4442°W  / 38.9108; -77.4442 Theodore Van Kirk Theodore Jerome "Dutch" Van Kirk (February 27, 1921 – July 28, 2014)

3264-407: The war, the Enola Gay returned to the United States, where it was operated from Roswell Army Air Field , New Mexico . In May 1946, it was flown to Kwajalein for the Operation Crossroads nuclear tests in the Pacific, but was not chosen to make the test drop at Bikini Atoll . Later that year, it was transferred to the Smithsonian Institution and spent many years parked at air bases exposed to

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3328-539: The weather and souvenir hunters, before its 1961 disassembly and storage at a Smithsonian facility in Suitland, Maryland . In the 1980s, veterans groups engaged in a call for the Smithsonian to put the aircraft on display, leading to an acrimonious debate about exhibiting the aircraft without a proper historical context. The cockpit and nose section of the aircraft were exhibited at the National Air and Space Museum (NASM) on

3392-437: Was considered very inefficient , with only 1.7% of its fissile material reacting. The radius of total destruction was about one mile (1.6 km), with resulting fires across 4.4 square miles (11 km ). Americans estimated that 4.7 square miles (12 km ) of the city were destroyed. Japanese officials determined that 69% of Hiroshima's buildings were destroyed and another 6–7% damaged. Some 70,000–80,000 people, 30% of

3456-513: Was a navigator in the United States Army Air Forces , best known as the navigator of the Enola Gay when it dropped the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima . Upon the death of fellow crewman Morris Jeppson on March 30, 2010, Van Kirk became the last surviving member of the Enola Gay crew. Van Kirk was born in Northumberland, Pennsylvania , to Frederick and Grace (Snyder) Van Kirk. He joined

3520-627: Was ailing. Van Kirk was present at the 2008 Thunder over Michigan Air Show. On Friday, April 9, 2010 Van Kirk spoke at the University of West Georgia in the Biology Building Lecture Hall. It was billed as "Lone Survivor of Enola Gay Visits UWG" . On September 3, 2010 Major Van Kirk, accompanied by his wife, appeared at the model air show "Warbirds Over Atlanta 2010" in Ball Ground, Georgia where he signed his books and photographs as

3584-506: Was contained inside a 41-by-47-by-138-inch (100 cm × 120 cm × 350 cm) wooden crate that was secured to the deck of the USS ; Indianapolis . Unlike the six uranium-235 target discs, which were later flown to Tinian on three separate aircraft arriving 28 and 29 July, the assembled projectile with the nine uranium-235 rings installed was shipped in a single lead-lined steel container weighing 300 pounds (140 kg) that

3648-475: Was hoped that the Air Force would guard the plane, but, lacking hangar space, it was left outdoors on a remote part of the air base, exposed to the elements. Souvenir hunters broke in and removed parts. Insects and birds then gained access to the aircraft. Paul E. Garber of the Smithsonian Institution became concerned about the Enola Gay ' s condition, and on 10 August 1960, Smithsonian staff began dismantling

3712-503: Was locked to brackets welded to the deck of Captain Charles B. McVay III 's quarters. Both the L-11 and projectile were dropped off at Tinian on 26 July 1945. On 5 August 1945, during preparation for the first atomic mission, Tibbets assumed command of the aircraft and named it after his mother, Enola Gay Tibbets, who, in turn, had been named for the heroine of a novel. When it came to selecting

3776-427: Was often asked, "given a choice about his role in the Hiroshima bombing, would he do it again?": Under the same circumstances – and the key words are "the same circumstances"  yes, I would do it again. We were in a war for five years. [ sic ] We were fighting an enemy that had a reputation for never surrendering, never accepting defeat. It's really hard to talk about morality and war in

3840-484: Was one of the first fifteen B-29s built to the " Silverplate " specification— of 65 eventually completed during and after World War II—giving them the primary ability to function as nuclear "weapon delivery" aircraft. These modifications included an extensively modified bomb bay with pneumatic doors and British bomb attachment and release systems, reversible pitch propellers that gave more braking power on landing, improved engines with fuel injection and better cooling, and

3904-525: Was probably the most beautiful piece of machinery that any pilot ever flew." Restoration of the bomber began on 5 December 1984, at the Paul E. Garber Preservation, Restoration, and Storage Facility in Suitland-Silver Hill, Maryland . The propellers that were used on the bombing mission were later shipped to Texas A&M University . One of these propellers was trimmed to 12.5 feet (3.8 m) for use in

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3968-524: Was shipped in pieces to the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Virginia from March–June 2003, with the fuselage and wings reunited for the first time since 1960 on 10 April 2003 and assembly completed on 8 August 2003. The aircraft has been on display at the Udvar-Hazy Center since the museum annex opened on 15 December 2003. As a result of the earlier controversy,

4032-514: Was survived by his four children. His decorations include: Captain (Air Corps) Theodore J. Van Kirk, United States Army Air Forces, for gallantry in action while engaged in aerial flight against the Japanese Empire on 6 August 1945. Captain Van Kirk was Navigator for a combat crew of the B-29 aircraft of the 393d Bombardment Squadron , 509th Composite Group , 20th Air Force , which flew from

4096-401: Was the weather reconnaissance aircraft for Kokura , the primary target. Enola Gay reported clear skies over Kokura, but by the time Bockscar arrived, the city was obscured by smoke from fires from the conventional bombing of Yahata by 224 B-29s the day before. After three unsuccessful passes, Bockscar diverted to its secondary target, Nagasaki, where it dropped its bomb. In contrast to

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