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Overnight, the base was completely cleared of units currently stationed there, which dropped the population from 20,000 to around 1,500.Īn operation code-named “Silver Plate” was undertaken to modify B-29 Superfortresses to accommodate the “Little Boy” and “Fat Man” atomic bombs. Tibbet’s mission was part of the larger “Manhattan Project” and Wendover, code-named “Kingman,” was known as Manhattan Project site K.
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Tibbets posted on the Wendover Airbase website, the commander of the P-47 Thunderbolt unit there described Wendover as “The most perfect base I’ve ever been on.
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Tibbets had his choice of installations throughout the Air Corps inventory for his top secret mission, but once he visited Wendover, he knew the search was over.Īccording to an interview of Col. Tibbets was selected to be its commander. 17, 1944, and a young, energetic Army Air Corps officer named Col. The 509th Bomb Group was activated on Dec. had another idea in the works to prevent this catastrophic loss of life. gone through with a full-scale invasion of Japan. losses at 400,000-800,000 killed in action and 5-10 million Japanese killed, had the U.S. Projected casualties vary but estimates created by the war department, based off of experiences at Iwo Jima and Okinawa, put U.S. Japan prepared more than 8,000 suicide aircraft and prepared the civilian population for a fanatical, last-stand defense of the homeland. It would occur in two phases: the invasion of Kyushu, called Operation Olympic, and the invasion of the large island of Honshu, called Operation Coronet. Thousands of Japanese civilians killed their families or committed suicide by jumping off cliffs into the sea rather than suffer the dishonor of surrender.Īfter Okinawa, plans were drawn up for Operation Downfall, which would be the invasion of the home islands of Japan. The bloody struggle for this minute piece of land led to the deaths of 12,510 U.S. For comparison, New York City is 468 square miles. The situation grew even more grave at the battle of Okinawa, where from April 1 to June 22, 1945, a battle raged over an island consisting of 464 square miles. Marines and Navy sailors were killed fighting over this tiny piece of land. In February 1945, the battle of Iwo Jima raged on a tiny, pork chop-shaped island no more than a few miles long. While Wendover AAF thrived, the situation in the Pacific was grim. This oasis in the desert consisted of more than 20,000 military personnel and civilians, 668 buildings, seven large aircraft hangars and three 8,100-foot-long concrete runways. This is the tale of the 509th Bomb Group that trained, outfitted and deployed from Wendover in 1945.īy the fall of 1944, Wendover Army Airfield was a hotbed of activity. While the sacrifice and heroism are amazing, even more significant contributions to the eventual surrender of the Empire of Japan were made at Wendover. In last week’s article, we explored the incredible contribution Wendover and the Greatest Generation made to bring Nazi Germany to its knees via strategic bombing.