B-29 over Tokyo Drawing

[Pathfinder]

Hello friends,

Have just completed my pencil study and thought I would share it with my fellow aviation aficionados. This piece has been dedicated to the crew that actually flew this mission and it was the navigator who kindly helped me with details.

Click here to see the pencil gallery and then on the drawing itself:

http://www.blueskygalleries.co.uk/page25.html

(Photo may appear a little out of focus, but this pencil study is a tough piece to photo without getting a horrible glare, even with no flash! Will try to take another later today).

Please enjoy.

Thank you,

Pathfinder

[CJE]

Very nice rendering.
But I have always read that the B-29s flew stripped of their defensive armament (except for the tail cannon).

[Pathfinder]

You are correct, all guns were stripped apart from the tail guns.

I was in two minds whether to show the '29 with or without her guns, but in the end decided to use my artistic license and place them in. My reasoning: others less knowledgeable about the shift in policy with these nocturnal missions may have thought I had forgotton to place the guns altogether!

However, you point out a very valid point which has given me some food for thought. Perhaps I should have give people more credit and not placed them in, for the sake of historical accuracy.

Glad you like the drawing anyway.

Thanks for pointing this out.

Regards
Pathfinder

[Jim Oxley]

Actually B-29's flew with gun turrents intact up until Le May took over the 20th AF. As part of his efficiency drive (among other things ) he had the turrents removed, introduced night attacks on a large scale and lowered the bombing height substantially.

[Pathfinder]

Hello again Jim,

The book I read states the guns were removed but doesn't mention the turrets. So the complete turrets were removed?

I know LeMay took over in Jan of '45, but my sources state he didn't make any changes at first. I know that this particular mission was flown at night, at a lower altitude, and with guns removed (turrets too? If so, would all ships have done this. What happened to the gunners if this is the case, as the crew list states they all flew that night and my book states that each '29 had 11 crew members onboard).

Am I right in stating that March 9/10, 1945 was the first night time firebombing of Tokyo?

Regards
Pathfinder

[CJE]

My two cents.
If LeMay's move was not taken overnight, it came both as a surprise and a great shock to the crews. He couldn't have the turrets removed without the crews noticing it. So I guess they just got rid of the guns.

[Artist]

Very nice drawing! You may want to look at the shape of a B-29 tail assembly. Your vertical stablizer looks a bit off. Robert

[Pathfinder]

Artist: glad you like the drawing and thanks for your comments.

All: with my heart in my mouth I attempted some modifications and am happy to say I removed all but the tail guns. Now she is historically accurate and I feel much better.

Thanks for the feedback everyone; it proves people are taking real notice of my aviation art.

Regards,
Pathfinder