Tibbets Passing Marks End of An Era

Written by Elbert L. Watson, Historian

Nov 07, 2007 at 12:00 AM

Paul Tibbets and his grandson Colonel Paul Tibbets IV in the cockpit of Fifi, the fully restored and only flyable B-29 in existence today. Many World War II veterans and military history buffs who study that era, are mourning the recent passing of Paul W. Tibbets, who piloted  the ENOLA GAY, the famous B-29 that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, August 6, 1945, and brought the war to a dramatic end. It was my privilege to know and work with General Tibbets on several occasions while living in Indianapolis, Indiana. I headed a national citizens group that promoted appropriate observances of the 50th Anniversary of World War II. A key part of our activities was to fight against the reckless and pervasive revisionism that is bent on denigrating America’s critical role in turning back Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan from their sordid goals of world conquest. Tibbets came to Indianapolis several times as the featured speaker for commemorative events, always drawing huge crowds of admiring veterans and their families. They wanted to meet him, shake his hand, pat him on the back, or have their picture taken with him. To these men who had survived the greatest struggle known to mankind, Paul Tibbets  represented life, family, and home. One of my prized possessions is a photograph in my office of me, Tibbets, and Ensign George Gay, the lone survivor of Torpedo Squadron 8 at the crucial Battle of Midway. In 1945 I was a youngster growing up in Birmingham, Alabama. Many miles away my father was preparing to board a troop ship in California at the very moment the ENOLA GAY soared into the heavens on its historic flight. Because of that mission, my father never had to scramble up that gangplank. Instead, he came home to live out his life, sing in his church choir, peddle his leather goods, and (with apologies to Tiger and Gamecock fans) cheer for the Alabama Crimson Tide. No wonder that photo of these two great men is so special. But enough of that! Let us go back to the airplane, the man, and the gallant crew who abruptly shut down World War II. Today, the ENOLA GAY reposes in quiet dignity in the Smithsonian Institute’s National Air and Space Museum near Dulles Airport outside Washington, D.C. Stretching 29 feet and 7 inches from the floor to its top, and with a wingspan of 140 feet it is hard to miss. The crucial role played by the ENOLA GAY dates back to 1939, when rumors spread that Germany was developing an atomic bomb. Japan was also involved in atomic research under the direction of Yoshio Nishina. One shudders to think what the world would be like had either of those two countries successfully completed atomic research ahead of us. Still, in its isolationist posture the United States did nothing itself until August 1942, when the top secret Manhattan Project was set up under the auspices of the Army Corps of Engineers, headed by a tough-minded general named Leslie R. Groves. Groves, who recently had supervised the construction of the Pentagon, established strategically located facilities in three places: Oak Ridge, Tennessee; Eastern Washington State; and Los Alamos, New Mexico. Incredibly, in less than three years he successfully led the ambitious project through basic research production of fissile material and testing. As the year 1945 opened, Manhattan stood on the threshold of producing the world’s first atomic bomb. Truman’s options to end the war In November 1944, Franklin Roosevelt was reelected to a fourth term as president. His vice-presidential running mate was the little known Missouri Senator, Harry S. Truman. Roosevelt knew of the bomb’s progress from its inception but Truman was completely unaware of the project. That all changed when Roosevelt died of a fatal cerebral hemorrhage and Truman was sworn in as president on April 12, 1945. Following the brief White House ceremony, Secretary of War Henry L. Stimson took Truman aside to inform him that America would soon have a weapon of extraordinary power. Twelve days later he and Groves thoroughly briefed the new president on the still untested bomb. Germany’s collapse ended the war in Europe on May 9, V-E Day. Though relieved, Truman knew that more sacrifice for Americans lay ahead. Having seen the ugly face of war as an infantry officer in World War I, he understood the enemy quite well. Though Japan had been pushed back across the Pacific, it still had the means----and determination----to make America pay a heavy price for ultimate victory. Japan’s military forces, for instance, could still commit 2.3 million troops against an invading army, including 10,000 aircraft, most of them manned by "kamikaze" suicide pilots. Suicide boats and human torpedoes would defend the beaches. A three to one advantage favored the Japanese against an invading army. Local militia and ordinary citizens----explosives strapped to their bodies----were also expected to take up the fight. Laboring under a harsh militaristic rule, Japan was obviously preparing to commit national suicide in a desperate effort to stave off inevitable defeat. Though Japan’s ultimate fate had been sealed once the United States took the Marianas Islands in 1944, it was obvious that a land invasion would exact a high price. Military planners estimated that the loss in life could run as high as 500,000 Americans before it was over. Truman carefully weighed all of his options. During the Potsdam Conference (July 17-August 2, 1945) he was notified that an atomic bomb had been successfully exploded on July 16 at Alamogordo, New Mexico. His mind made up, Truman warned Japan to surrender unconditionally and immediately in order to avoid "utter destruction." Japan said "No." On July 30 Truman sent Stimson a note in long hand: "Release when ready." The 509th Composite Group The unit responsible for delivering the atomic bomb on Japan was the 509th Composite Group, an elite group of airmen handpicked by 29 year old Colonel Paul W. Tibbets, Jr., the commander. Consisting of pilots, navigators, engineers, and mechanics, the men began intensive B-29 training in Wendover, Utah on December 17, 1944. Tibbets was told that the bomb being developed equaled 20,000 tons of dynamite. Upon completion of its training, the 509th was deployed to Tinian in the Marianas Island in May 1945. The Enola Gay B-29 bomber, manufactured by Boeing Aircraft Company, was any airman’s dream airplane. It was equipped with pressurized cabins, remote control gun turrets, and advanced radar and avionics, all of which greatly escalated the future of aviation. At a maximum speed of 360 mph, it could fly so high that intercepting enemy aircraft could not reach it. Able to cover 3,250 miles before refueling, it was within easy range of Japan from its Tinian airbase, 1,300 miles away. General Curtis Lemay, the master-mind behind the highly successful conventional bombings in early 1945 of Japanese cities, including Tokyo, selected Hiro-shima for the mission because of its numerous war factories and headquarters of the Japanese Second Army. Tibbets named his airplane after his mother’s maiden name, Enola Gay. The bomb that was loaded onto the giant aircraft was dubbed "Little Boy." Impressed by its size and weight, Tibbets thought "it was not little by any standard. It was a monster compared with any bomb that I had ever dropped. ‘Little Boy’ was 28 inches in diameter and 12 feet long. Its weight was more than 9,000 pounds. With its coat of dull gun metal paint, it was an ugly monster." Special Bombing Mission No. 13 At 2:30 a.m., August 6, Tibbets gunned the Enola Gay’s powerful motors and taxied more than a mile to the southwest end of the North Field runway for the historic takeoff. With 7,000 gallons of gasoline and a 9,000 pound bomb on board, the mighty aircraft trembled and shuddered during the engine’s long warm-up. Finally cleared for takeoff, Tibbets began his long run toward the sea almost two miles away, lifting off at 155 mph near the end of the runway. Special Bombing Mission No. 13 was underway. There were other planes aloft that day as the Enola Gay plowed through the heavens. Three weather scout planes led the way. Trailing along were the Great Artiste and No. 91. Still, it was a lonely mission for the crew of the Enola Gay: only they would drop the bomb and only they would suffer catastrophic consequences should something go wrong. At 6:30 a.m. bombardier Tom Ferebee climbed into the bomb bay, removed three green plugs from the bomb’s casing and attached three red plugs. "Little Boy" was now activated and ready to go. Once that was done, Tibbets told his crew over the intercom: "We are carrying the world’s first atomic bomb. When the bomb is dropped, Lieutenant Beser will record our reactions. This recording is for history, so watch your language." Shortly after 8 a.m. Hiroshima appeared on the distant horizon, the morning sunlight glistening off its tall buildings. The landscape which unfolded in front of the crew was exactly what the aerial photographs had indicated. All that remained was to locate the I.P. (Initial Point) on which the bomb was to be dropped. Ten miles away Ferebee spotted it, the T-shaped Atoi Bridge in the center of the city. At 8:15 Hiroshima time Ferebee shouted: "Bomb away!" The bomb-bay door snapped open and "Little Boy" plummeted toward the earth. Tibbets quickly swung the Enola Gay into a diving right-hand turn of 155 degrees. Down on the ground air raid warnings wailed as the city became aware of the approaching aircraft, though suspecting nothing of the powerful missile hurtling toward them. Ferebee was almost right on target. Forty-three seconds from the time he released the bomb, "Little Boy" exploded within 800 feet of the Atoi Bridge, bringing on the Atomic Age in a dramatic and deadly fashion. The flash from far below lighted up the airplane’s instrument panels, causing a bright glare. This was followed by a sharp acceleration upward in what resembled a huge gray ball of compressed air that bounced the crew around like rag dolls. After a second blow passed through the airplane everything settled down. Its primary mission completed, the Enola Gay serenely resumed its flight home and into history. The welcoming committee on Tinian consisted of more than 200 officers and enlisted men, among them General Carl Spaatz, commander of the Strategic Air Force, and General Nathan Twining, chief of the Marianas Air Force. Spaatz was there to pin the Distinguished Service Cross on Tibbets. One person after another shook his hand or slapped him on the back, congratulating him on his successful flight or inquiring about the bomb. Back in Washington Truman did not mince words: "It is an atomic bomb. . . . It was to spare the Japanese people from utter destruction that the ultimatum of July 20 was issued at Potsdam. Their leaders rejected that ultimatum. If they do not now accept our terms they may expect a rain of ruin from the air, the like of which has never been seen on this earth." Fortunately, reason did emerge among Japanese leaders several days later but only after a second bomb, dropped by another B-29, Bock’s Car, leveled Nagasaki, finally ending the war thrust upon America by Japan’s infamous attack at Pearl Harbor. Shortly after the war, Truman invited Tibbets, Spaatz, Colonel David Shilling, and General Jimmy Doolittle to his office. Abruptly turning to Tibbets, the President asked: "What do you think?" "I think I did as I was told," came the response. "You are damned right you did," Truman said. "Does anybody ever give you a hard time about that Hiroshima business?" "Oh every once in awhile," mumbled  Tibbets. Pointing his finger directly at Tibbets, Truman, his voice rising, said: "If anybody does that, send them to me. I’m the one who sent you and you did a damn fine job." Paul Tibbets went on to become a brigadier-general. In 1946 he participated in the Bikini Atom Bomb Tests as a technical advisor. Later he led the way for establishing the National Military Command Center in the Pentagon. He retired from the Air Force in 1966 after 30 years of service to his country. He is enshrined with honor in the National Aviation Hall of Fame. Only one crew member of the Enola Gay now survives: Ted J. Van Kirk, the plane’s navigator. But the story does not quite end there. Tibbets’s legacy touches our area. His son Paul Tibbets III is a Greenville pharmacist, and also the father of Paul Tibbets IV, a lieutenant colonel who commands a Squadron of the B-2 Stealth Bombers. We live in a very small world after all, don’t we? --------------------------------------- Elbert Watson, retired, is a professional historian and speaker who lives in Dacusville. He specializes in World War II and the War Between the States. He can be reached at or (864)442-1773.