Enola Gay - The Lady that Dropped the Bomb

The "Enola Gay" is one of the most famous airplanes in military history. It is the airplane that dropped the first atomic bomb, named "Little Boy", on Hiroshima in 1945.

The Enola Gay is a B-29 Superfortress long range heavy bomber manufactured by Boeing during the Second World War. It's four powerful engines drive propellers that gave it extensive range and lifting capacity.

The bomber was crewed by 13 men, and was named after pilot Paul Tibbets' mother, Enola Gay Tibbets. It remained in service until July 1946.

A vintage photo of the Enola Gay in service.

The Enola Gay was painstakingly restored and sits ready for exhibition.

A view of the iconic cockpit with its many panes of glass.

An inside view of the cockpit. George Lucas' Millennium Falcon was obviously inspired by this plane.

The tail gunner's station was cramped, but it offered amazing views.

The restoration process was painstaking and took years to complete. The Enola Gay was broken down into sections able to fit in various exhibitions.

The front fuselage section on display at the National Air and Space Museum.

A view of a similar B-29 from above in flight.

Another in-flight view.

A photo autographed by one of the crew members.

Four of the crew, including the pilot, Paul Tibbets.

On August 6, 1945, the Enola Gay dropped the first atomic bomb used in combat on Hiroshima, Japan. World War 2 ended shortly after.

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