Hiroshima/Nagasaki; Centerboard I & II. 2018 anniversary
 

The 2018 anniversary of the nuclear mission to Hiroshima and Nagasaki are at hand. Depending on ones view not a day of celebration, rather one of remembrance.

My content here is primarily film/video in nature.

First is a silent film (do not try to turn up the volume). To the best of my understanding filmed by a US Navy film crew and attributed to the Naval History and Heritage Command, Archive (but others seem to like to take credit too). This covers loading of Little Boy into Enola Gay, mission departure and return to Tinian. Followed by Prep of Fat Man and loading into Bockscar with Nagasaki detonation images.

Tinian, Little Boy and Fat Man
https://www.youtube.com/embed/pXD_fzrcE20 (about 24 minutes)

The next is a PBS release "24 Hours After Hiroshima" a bit theatrical (but who doesn't love Peter Coyote as the narrator). The Little Boy bomb operational graphics used here are absolutely accurate. This is thanks to John Coster-Mullen, author of "Atom Bombs: The Top Secret Inside Story of Little Boy and Fat Man" being the technical adviser for this film.

An oddity of eye witnesses. Witness statement here only speak to the approach of a single B-29. In reality there were two, the strike aircraft "Enola Gay" carrying the bomb and "The Great Artiste" the instrument aircraft carrying three parachute instrument canisters designed to measure the explosive force of the detonation and transmit it back to "The Great Artiste" measurements group scientists onboard. These planes were flying in formation together, when Little Boy was dropped, so were the three instrument canisters followed by both planes diving and turning 155 degrees in opposite directions from the target to avoid the detonation shock wave.

During this mission there was a third strike force aircraft "Necessary Evil" the photographic aircraft, perhaps orbiting the target out of sight to any witnesses; not that the witness saw anything except the approach of a single B-29.

24 hours after Hiroshima
https://www.youtube.com/embed/tHZQQGNuBPU (about 42 minutes)

The last film/video contribution here falls a little outside the B-29 focus from the Marianas but nonetheless is important to the end of the Pacific War. Also it is perhaps the least recorded/documented battle at the end of World War II, and to a large degree overshadowed by the publicity of the USAAF nuclear attacks .

And, we certainly would not want to leave out our Soviet "allies" from this equation which aided in ending the Pacific War. To what degree; you be the judge after viewing this content. This is also a crystal ball look at the Soviet Union capabilities; then our Ally soon to become a U.S. Cold War enemy. If interested, make some popcorn this video is lengthy.

Battlefield of Manchuria World War II
https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZXuQE90gnr4 (about 1.5 hours)

I would attached 509th CG Operational Orders & 3rd PRS Op Order's, TDY to the 509th in addition for review, source AFHRA, REEL B0678 but my data sharing allotment on this web site has been exceeded. Purchase of this data is still available via AFHRA, Maxwell, AFB. email requests to AFHRA.NEWS@US.AF.MIL

Scott Muselin