Enola Gay
Why the U.S. Dropped the Atomic Bomb on Japan in WWII
By Robert A. RosenthalHow did we get to dropping an atomic bomb on Hiroshima? Who was responsible? Where and when did it begin? Read more
Enola Gay
New Mexico: Atomic Spy Capital
By Richard HigginsNew Mexico and its capital of Santa Fe bring to mind some beautiful images. Stunning sunsets, unlimited vistas, a plethora of art galleries, the spectacular food enlivened with the local green chile, an ancient Native American culture that still thrives, and a Spanish heritage tradition going back to within 50 years of Columbus’s arrival all make for a unique cultural and physical environment. Read more
Enola Gay
B-29 Production
By Joe KirbyWhen Maj. Gen. Curtis Lemay, the hard-driving commander of the Twentieth U.S. Air Force based in Guam, decided to change tactics in early 1945 to boost the effectiveness of the B-29 Superfortress, it was the Bell Aircraft plant in Marietta, Georgia, that ultimately provided him with the stripped-down bombers that played such a key role in ending the war in the Pacific. Read more
Enola Gay
Women of the Air Force
By Amy Goodpaster StrebeIn 1941 two events took place on opposite sides of the world that forever impacted the history of women in aviation. Read more
Enola Gay
The Men Against the Bomb
By Andrew J. RotterThe men and women who imagined and then built the atomic bomb thought they were doing something different from what makers of “conventional” weapons did. Read more
Enola Gay
The Port Chicago Disaster
By Mason B. WebbIn the summer of 1944, with American forces battling their way ever closer to the Japanese home islands, the need for ammunition in the Pacific was hitting its peak. Read more
Enola Gay
Taking Tinian: Crucial Airfield in the Marianas
By Nathan N. PreferThe Marines were tired, eager for a rest and the opportunity to get themselves and their equipment back into battle condition. Read more
Enola Gay
The Norden Bombsight: Was it Truly Accurate Beyond Belief?
By Roaul DrapeauIn a 1921 bombing test, U.S. Army Air Corps General Billy Mitchell’s airmen sank the former German battleship Ostfriesland. Read more
