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Paul Tibbets Jr., who flew plane that dropped first atomic bomb, dies at 92
Columbus Dispatch ^ | Thursday, November 1, 2007 10:29 AM

Posted on 11/01/2007 8:43:44 AM PDT by snippy_about_it

Paul Tibbets Jr., who flew the plane that dropped the first atomic bomb — on Hiroshima, Japan — died this morning at his East Side home. He was 92.

Tibbets had suffered small strokes and heart failure in his final years and had been in hospice care.

He was born in Quincy, Ill., but grew up in Miami after his father moved the family there.

See link for complete story. Tibbets fell in love with flight and, at age 12, volunteered as a backseat assistant to a biplane pilot, dropping leaflets for the Curtiss Candy Co. at fairs, carnivals and other public gatherings.

He joined the Army Air Corps in 1938.

(Excerpt) Read more at dispatch.com ...


TOPICS: Foreign Affairs; Front Page News; Government; News/Current Events; US: Ohio
KEYWORDS: atomicbomb; enolagay; milhist; obituary; paultibbets; paultibbetsjr; veterans; wwii
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To: montag813

No, today much of our nuclear arsenal is much smaller than the Hiroshima bomb. Think of the tactical nukes that have as little as ten percent of the kilotonage as the Enola Gay’s.

Sure the strategic H-bombs are much larger but in the whole scope of our nuclear arsenal perhaps it was a medium to a medium-small. It was not tiny.


81 posted on 11/01/2007 10:08:50 AM PDT by Monterrosa-24 (...even more American than a French bikini and a Russian AK-47.)
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To: Proud2BeRight
Your actions saved a million American lives

He saved a lot more Japanese lives than he did American. Your million for the Americans sounds a little high. While estimates covered a wide range, the likely number would have been up to a million casualties on the allied side, with probably around 100,000 to 250,000 of those being deaths. Total war related military deaths to that point had been just over 400,000 for the Americans.

82 posted on 11/01/2007 10:09:08 AM PDT by PAR35
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To: snippy_about_it
Most writers have looked to the ashes of Hiroshima and Nagasaki; to find answers for the use of those atomic weapons. The real answers lay in thousands of graves from Pearl Harbor around the world to Normandy and back again.

Well said.

RIP, BG Tibbets.

83 posted on 11/01/2007 10:15:14 AM PDT by ArrogantBustard (Western Civilisation is aborting, buggering, and contracepting itself out of existence.)
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To: RightWhale; monkapotamus; Tamar1973; SandRat; All

They made 1980s song from that plane

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYVVf7BHvEo


84 posted on 11/01/2007 10:19:11 AM PDT by SevenofNine ("We are Freepers, all your media belong to us, resistence is futile")
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Comment #85 Removed by Moderator

To: snippy_about_it

Farewell to a great Florida Gator and a great American.


86 posted on 11/01/2007 10:22:07 AM PDT by dfwgator
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Comment #87 Removed by Moderator

To: snippy_about_it

I heard on the radio that he requested no funeral or headstone so that his burial site would not become a site where protests could be staged.WHAT A MAN,and WHAT A GREAT AMERICAN!!


88 posted on 11/01/2007 10:24:21 AM PDT by bandleader
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To: Monterrosa-24
Sure the strategic H-bombs are much larger

I was referring to weapons-in-kind. Strategic, not tactical.

89 posted on 11/01/2007 10:25:00 AM PDT by montag813
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To: snippy_about_it

Paul Tibbetts, Jr., you are a great American.

His actions, and all those involved in the atomic bomb effort in WW2, saved hundreds of thousands of GIs and millions of Japanese lives, and helped force Japan to surrender before they self annihilated themselves.

We were fortunate to have men of his caliber, in countless numbers, in a generation that required to make a stand for freedom against monstrous evil.

In our time, may we be found as worthy.


90 posted on 11/01/2007 10:26:21 AM PDT by exit82 (I believe Juanita--Hillary enabled Juanita's rapist.)
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To: Diogenesis

I wonder if the white parts are mist from the detonation, or overexposure of the film due to the radiation?


91 posted on 11/01/2007 10:32:26 AM PDT by mvpel (Michael Pelletier)
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To: snippy_about_it

While a second lieutenant at Turner AFB, GA 1964-1966 I worked for Colonel Tom Ferebee, the bombardier on the Enola Gay. The liberal media tried to float the lie that the crews that dropped the bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki all went nuts. Tom was as sane as anyone I have ever known. He was a great man to work for because he would support you 100% if you willing to give your 100%. He had no tolerance for BS and a couple of officers in my chain of command learned that the hard way.


92 posted on 11/01/2007 10:37:47 AM PDT by RightWingConspirator (Redefeat Communism by defeating Hitlary in 2008)
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To: snippy_about_it
Thank You Sir and RIP.

If my memory is correct his son is or was a B-2 driver.

A friend of mine has a painting similar to this with the B-29 and B-2 and both father and son signatures.


93 posted on 11/01/2007 10:44:37 AM PDT by taildragger
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To: The Louiswu

My dad completed a tour in europe and volunteered to follow his bomb group to Okinawa. Even the air corps units were pretty sure that they would have high losses if the invasion went forward and they expected the ground troops to really take a hit. His group dropped warning leaflets on Japan 2 days before the drop and there was a collective sigh of relief when Japan surrendered a week later.


94 posted on 11/01/2007 10:45:44 AM PDT by RJS1950 (The democrats are the "enemies foreign and domestic" cited in the federal oath)
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To: snippy_about_it

National Hero, but just one of many.


95 posted on 11/01/2007 10:57:50 AM PDT by Cali Redneck
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To: Rb ver. 2.0

The captain of the ship, USS Indianapolis, that delivered the first A-bomb to Tinian, committed suicide a few years after being made the scapegoat for the then US Navy policy of not listing and following up on ships that were “over due” (due to security concerns).


96 posted on 11/01/2007 10:59:10 AM PDT by Calvin Locke
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To: snippy_about_it

I had the pleasure of meeting General Tibbets a few years ago and have a signed copy of his book. Farewell to an American hero.


97 posted on 11/01/2007 10:59:52 AM PDT by Colonel_Flagg ("No one asked you your opinion, Christopher." - Fred Thompson)
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To: GreyFriar

Thanks for the ping. Colonel Tibbets was instrumental in saving at least a million lives. May he rest in peace.


98 posted on 11/01/2007 11:00:13 AM PDT by zot
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To: NCC-1701

Sounds like a fascinating book.


99 posted on 11/01/2007 11:05:57 AM PDT by jwalburg (Knowledge is power. Power corrupts. What does that say about schools?)
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To: snippy_about_it

A real hero. I did not realize the plane, Enola Gay, was named for his mother. The Enola Gay and Tibbets are popular answers to cross word puzzle questions.


100 posted on 11/01/2007 11:07:08 AM PDT by Uncle Hal
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