This proposal, however, was met with some opposition in the Research Advisory Committee’s meeting on October 1988. They decided to exhibit the Enola Gay at the annex, with an accompanying message about the dangers of strategic bombing and escalation. The Enola Gay had recently finished being renovated and the museum had been concerned about transportation and reassemble fees therefore, the proposed annex appeared to be a fitting location. This proposed annex would solve the hassle of disassemble and reassemble larger aircrafts.
In 1977, NASM had begun discussing the need for bigger buildings to house larger modern aircrafts, and in 1980, the museum had surveyed candidates for the future annex and decided upon the Dulles Airport. This vision included his conscious decision to display the Enola Gay.Īt first, the Enola Gay was planned to be displayed at an annex NASM facility near Washington Dulles International Airport. He wanted the museum to be a “public conscience” that would discuss topics “under public debate,” Linenthal described. His vision for the museum diverged from previous directors. In 1987, NASM hired Martin Harwit as their new director. Linenthal, who was on the advisory board of the Enola Gay exhibit. However, the museum felt “ambivalence about the plane’s eventual display,” described historian Edward T. Restoration efforts by the Smithsonian started on December 5, 1984. The veterans formed “the Committee for the Restoration and Proud Display of the Enola Gay” to raise funds. Their motivations, at this time, stemmed primarily from the poor condition of the aircraft. In the 1980s, members of the 509 th Composite Group asked for a proper restoration of the aircraft. Garber Preservation, Restoration and Storage facility for NASM. In 1961, the Enola Gay was fully disassembled and moved to the Paul E. There its wings began to rust and vandals even damaged the plane. Notably, from 1953 to 1960, its home was Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. A fiery controversy ensued that demonstrated the competing historical narratives regarding the decision to drop the bomb.įollowing World War II, the Enola Gay had been moved around from location to location. It was not until August 14 that Japan agreed to an unconditional surrender.For the 50 th anniversary of the end of World War II, the National Air and Space Museum (NASM) proposed an exhibition that would include displaying the Enola Gay, the B-29 Superfortress that was used to drop the bomb on Hiroshima.
Even a second atomic attack three days later on the city of Nagasaki failed to bring an immediate end to the hostilities. Yet, this was not enough to persuade the Japanese leadership to surrender.
After the war, Supreme Allied Headquarters estimated that 129,558 were killed, wounded or missing as a result of the blast. Tibbets and his crew looked back to behold an ominous mushroom-shaped cloud boiling into the upper atmosphere. A blast of blinding light engulfed the crew as the plane made a radical turn to escape the explosion. At 8:16 the bomb was released and detonated a few thousand feet above ground. The Enola Gay arrived over the city at 7:25 a.m. The remainder of the trip to their target was unmarred by any Japanese opposition as the bomb was armed and prepared for release. Their objective was a city of approximately 350,000 located on the southwestern portion of Japan's largest island and as yet untouched by the massive bombing raids carried on by US forces. Tibbets announced to his specially trained crew that they carried the world's first atomic bomb and that their target was Hiroshima. Approximately four hours into the flight, Col. In the early morning darkness of Augthe B-29 "Enola Gay" piloted by Colonel Paul Tibbets lifted off the runway at Tinian Island and flew into history.