In 1949, the Smithsonian Institution assumed control of the plane, and it is now part of the Air and Space Museum. He also autographed copies of his book 'The Return of the Enola Gay,' during a book-signing event in the. On August 30, 1946, the Enola Gay was placed in storage and never flew another combat mission. Tibbets talks about his experience flying a B-29 Superfortress, known as the Enola Gay, and dropping the first atomic bomb used as a weapon during World War II. Martin Company delivered the plane to the military on May 18, 1945. The pilot of the Enola Gay is General Paul Tibbets, leader of the 509th Composite Group. The United States military kept the Enola Gay in use for only a short period of time. Becoming the first plane to drop an atomic bomb. Tibbets named the plane after his mother. The name of the plane was Enola Gay, named after the pilots mother. Captain Paul Tibbets, the Enola Gay's pilot, personally selected this plane to drop the atomic bomb. The bomb exploded about 1,500 feet above the city with a force of 15,000 tons of TNT. The plane had a 2,200-horsepower engine, with a maximum speed of 360 miles per hour and a range of 3,250 miles. Martin Company assembled it in Omaha, Nebraska, in early 1945. The Enola Gay is a Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber, named for Enola Gay Tibbets, the mother of the pilot, Colonel Paul Tibbets, who selected the aircraft.
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Sweeney and his Bock's Car crew dropped the second atomic bomb, 'Fat Man,' on Nagasaki. Enola Gay dropped the first atomic bomb, 'Little Boy,' was dropped at 8:15 a.m. Boeing Aircraft Company manufactured the plane, and the Glenn L. In the early-morning hours, the cloud cover was minimal over Hiroshima, the primary target. This atomic bomb, nicknamed Little Boy, along with a second atomic bomb, dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, on August 9, 1945, prompted the Japanese government to surrender, bringing World War II to an end.
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On August 6, 1945, the crew of the Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan.