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Tibbets Jr. Built by the Glenn L. Martin Company at its Bellevue, Nebraska, plant, the Enola Gay was one of the first fifteen Bs modified under the "Silverplate" specifications. These modifications included an extensively altered bomb bay, reversible pitch propellers for better landing control, improved engines with fuel injection, and the enolia gay of protective armor and gun turrets to reduce weight.

On May 9,while still on the assembly line, Colonel Tibbets personally selected the aircraft for its historic mission. The U. On June 14, Captain Robert A. Throughout July, the Enola Gay participated in several training flights and operational missions, including the dropping of "pumpkin bombs"—conventional explosives used to simulate the weight and handling of an atomic bomb—on industrial targets in Japan.

On August 1, its tail markings were changed to match those of the 6th Bombardment Group as a security measure, and its squadron number was altered from 12 to The atomic bomb, code-named "Little Boy," was transported to Tinian in separate components. The bomb's projectile and uranium target discs arrived by the USS Indianapolis and several aircraft in late July.

On August 5, Tibbets assumed command of the Enola Gay and named it after his mother. That same night, Private Nelson Miller painted the name under the pilot's window. Major William S. Jeppson removed the safety devices shortly before release. The bomb detonated approximately 1, feet above Hiroshima, creating a blast equivalent to 15 kilotons of TNT.

After releasing the bomb, the Enola Gay rapidly turned to escape the blast, feeling the shockwave 43 seconds later. The aircraft safely returned to Tinian at PM, where Tibbets and his crew were greeted with cheers and awarded medals. Three days later, on August 9,the Enola Gay enolia gay in the second atomic bombing mission as a weather reconnaissance aircraft for Kokura, the primary target.

However, due to heavy smoke and cloud cover, the primary target was abandoned, and the bomb was instead dropped on Nagasaki by another B, Bockscar. It later took part in Operation Crossroads nuclear tests in the Pacific but was not chosen to drop a test bomb. On August 30,ownership of the aircraft was transferred to the Smithsonian Institution, and it was officially removed from the U.

Army Air Forces inventory. For many years, the aircraft was stored outdoors at various air bases, enolia gay to the elements and souvenir hunters. InSmithsonian personnel dismantled the Enola Gay and moved it to a storage facility in Suitland, Maryland.

Hiroshima and Nagasaki Missions – Planes & Crews

In the early s, efforts began to restore and display the Enola Gay. Veterans of the th Composite Group, along with figures like Senator Barry Goldwater, advocated for its preservation. Restoration began in the s and continued into the s. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia.

Today, the Enola Gay remains a powerful artifact, symbolizing both the technological advancements of warfare and the devastating consequences of nuclear weapons. March 13,