The Silverplate Bombers PDF Download

Author: Richard H. Campbell
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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Table of contents

Author: David Doyle
Publisher: MMD-Squadron Signal
ISBN: 9780897476492
Category : B-29 (Bomber)
Languages : en
Pages : 88

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Author: Charles W. Sweeney
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1510724737
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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On August 9, 1945, on the tiny island of Tinian in the South Pacific, a twenty-five-year-old American Army Air Corps major named Charles W. Sweeney climbed aboard a B-29 Superfortress in command of his first combat mission, one devised specifically to bring a long and terrible war to a necessary conclusion. In the belly of his bomber, Bock's Car, was a newly developed, fully armed weapon that had never been tested in a combat situation. It was a weapon capable of a level of destruction never before dreamed of in the history of the human race, a bomb whose terrifying aftershock would ultimately determine the direction of the twentieth century and change the world forever. The last military officer to command an atomic mission, Major General Charles W. Sweeney has the unique distinction of having been an integral part of both the Hiroshima and the Nagasaki bombing runs. Now updated with a new epilogue from the co-author, his book is an extraordinary chronicle of the months of careful planning and training; the setbacks, secrecy, and snafus; and the nerve-shattering final seconds and the astonishing aftermath of what is arguably the most significant single event in modern history: the employment of an atomic weapon during wartime. The last military officer to command an atomic mission, Major General Charles W. Sweeney has the unique distinction of having been an integral part of both the Hiroshima and the Nagasaki bombing runs. His book is an extraordinary chronicle of the months of careful planning and training; the setbacks, secrecy, and snafus; and the nerve-shattering final seconds and the astonishing aftermath of what is arguably the most significant single event in modern history: the employment of an atomic weapon during wartime.

Author: Graham M. Simons
Publisher: Pen and Sword
ISBN: 1783376198
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 286

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“A well written history of a history-changing aircraft,” the bomber that carried the two atomic bombs that destroyed Hiroshima and Nagasaki in WWII (Aeromilitaria). The Boeing B-29 Superfortress was a four-engined heavy bomber flown primarily by the United States in World War Two and the Korean War. The name “Superfortress” was derived from that of its well-known predecessor, the B–17 Flying Fortress. The B-29 was the progenitor of a series of Boeing-built bombers, reconnaissance aircraft, trainers and tankers including the variant, B-50 Superfortress. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War Two. A very advanced bomber for its time, it included features such as pressurized cabins, an electronic fire-control system and remote-controlled machine-gun turrets. Though it was designed as a high-altitude daytime bomber, in practice it actually flew more low-altitude nighttime incendiary bombing missions. It was the primary aircraft in the American firebombing campaign against Japan in the final months of World War Two. Unlike many other World War Two-era bombers, the B-29 remained in service long after the war ended, with a few even being employed as flying television transmitters. The type was finally retired in the early 1960s, with 3,960 aircraft in all built. Without doubt there is a clear, strong requirement to “put the record straight” using primary source documentation to record the undoubted achievements alongside and in context with the shortcomings to the type’s design and operation that have otherwise received scant attention. The book covers all variants and is profusely illustrated.

Author: Don A. Farrell
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 0811769313
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 465

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Atomic Bomb Island tells the story of an elite, top-secret team of sailors, airmen, scientists, technicians, and engineers who came to Tinian in the Marianas in the middle of 1945 to prepare the island for delivery of the atomic bombs then being developed in New Mexico, to finalize the designs of the bombs themselves, and to launch the missions that would unleash hell on Japan. Almost exactly a year before the atomic bombs were dropped, strategically important Tinian was captured by Marines—because it was only 1,500 miles from Japan and its terrain afforded ideal runways from which the new B-29 bombers could pound Japan. In the months that followed, the U.S. turned virtually all of Tinian into a giant airbase, with streets named after those of Manhattan Island—a Marianas city where the bombs could be assembled, the heavily laden B-29s could be launched, and the Manhattan Project scientists could do their last work. Don Farrell has done this story incredible justice for the 75th anniversary. The book is a thoroughly researched, beautifully illustrated mosaic of the final phase of the Manhattan Project, from the Battle of Tinian and the USS Indianapolis to Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

Author: Robert A. Mann
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 078645413X
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 320

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The Boeing B-29 Superfortress lived an operational life of only 26 years, but what a life it was. The introduction to this book provides basic information on the physical plane: dimensions, specs, leading particulars and operational usages. Then an exhaustive day-by-day chronology of the B-29 is presented--from the earliest designs in 1934 through thousands of missions and aircraft events in World War II and Korea to the 1960 retirement of the last operational B-29. The book also includes an extensive glossary and three appendices, which provide a discussion of the general anatomy of a mission, a sample of operational voice or radio codes used in 1945, and a guide to (very unofficial) aircraft names.

Author: Robert A. Mann
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 0786482761
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 289

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Book Description
The B-29 Superfortress was for many years a cornerstone of American military aviation. Best known as a bomber, it also served in reconnaissance, as a tanker, and as a rescue plane. It was a crucial tool for American and Allied forces during World War II, Korea and beyond. This operational history of the B-29 gives in-depth information on the career of each plane. A list of the names and serial numbers of the planes, each plane's history from delivery date to removal from service, a description of the B-29's physical characteristics and performance parameters, and a description of the five B-29 variants are provided. Sections of the book give complete mission data for the B-29's World War II service in the China-Burma-India theater of operations, operations over Japan, aerial mining missions and test atomic bombing runs.

Author: Curtis E. LeMay
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781594160394
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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The Complete Story of the Design, Development, and Deployment of an Iconic Aircraft Among the most sophisticated aircraft flown during World War II, the Boeing B-29 Superfortress was designed to replace the B-17 as the primary long-range bomber of the U.S. Army Air Forces. With its distinctive glazed nose and long, thin wings that provided both speed at high altitude and stability at takeoff and landing, the Superfortress was the first operational bomber with a pressurized crew cabin and featured advanced radar and avionics. Armed with remote-controlled machine gun turrets and a 20,000 pound bomb load, it was the first USAAF bomber capable of mastering the vast distances of the Pacific Theater of World War II. The prototype flew in September 1942 but a series of post-production modifications delayed the bomber's first mission until April 1944. Superfortresses began attacking Japan in daylight with conventional ordnance from high altitude, but their mission was redirected in March 1945, with massive low-level formations dropping incendiary bombs! at night on Japanese cities. The ensuing firestorms, followed by the complete destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki by atomic bombs dropped from two specially modified "silverplate" B-29s, forced Japan to cease fighting. Written by the man who led the B-29 into combat, Superfortress: The Boeing B-29 and American Airpower in World War II is an important document of one of the most turbulent times in world history. General Curtis LeMay recalls the early debate about whether or not the United States needed a long-range bomber, how the B-29 was created and produced despite the enormous logistical difficulties of the design, and the decision to conduct fire-bombings against Japan and ultimately drop the atomic bomb. Highly praised when it was first published, this new edition is complete with photographs, a new introduction, and statistical tables.

Author: Charles T. O’Reilly
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 0786484004
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 256

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On August 6, 1945, the B-29 Enola Gay dropped an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, which ushered on the end of World War II. For the 50th anniversary of this major event in world history, the National Air and Space Museum of the Smithsonian Institution produced an exhibit. A controversy erupted, however, over the exhibit's historical authenticity. Veterans, for example, complained that the museum displayed a misrepresented version of history. After concisely covering the background of the Enola Gay and its mission, this study focuses on the controversy surrounding the museum exhibit. Issues covered include casualty figures, ethical questions, and political correctness, among others. The viewpoints of such groups as museum personnel, exhibit organizers, veterans, and historians are covered. Appendices offer information on content analysis of the National Air and Space Museum exhibit script, non-museum materials that were intended to complement the exhibit script, and the importance of full disclosure in research.

Author: William Wolf
Publisher: Schiffer Military History
ISBN:
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 368

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Although many books have been published about the B-29, none has been an in-depth look, with most being either superficial pictorials or focusing on the bombing campaigns, particularly the incendiary attacks and atomic bombings. This book, using rare, previously unexplored sources, intends to provide the definitive look at the bomber and crew, detailing every facet for the air enthusiast, historian and modeler. The author was granted rare access to the Pima Air & Space Museum's restored B-29 "Sentimental Journey" for inspection and photography, resulting in the most extensive photographic documentation of the B-29 ever published. The Pima Museum's archives, filled with B-29 technical and crew manuals also gave the author extensive information that had not been previously published. These sources, the author's extensive personal library, and microfilm resources enabled the author to produce this comprehensive look at the bomber and its crew in the context of the bomber's development and operational use. It is truly monumental in scope, both in words and photos.