Tibbets dies

[stanleywinthrop]

storyhttp://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSN01432398

[Stan]

I recall this article (http://www.theenolagay.com/plane.html) best regarding the man and his aircraft. Well said, General !


A number of people and veterans organizations have asked me to comment on the subject of the Enola Gay, the care afforded her by the Smithsonian Institution together with their treatment of the atomic mission in general.

From my point of view, the matter has been politicized, and, as a result, mishandled. Those whose business it is to create, mold, manipulate and utilize public opinion have done so as a matter of self-serving interest.

Consequently, history has been denigrated; the Enola Gay has been miscast and a group of valiant Americans have had their role in history treated shamefully. I am an airman, a pilot. In 1945, I was wearing the uniform of the US Army [Air Forces] following the orders of our commander-in-chief.

I was, to the best of my ability, doing what I could to bring the war to a victorious conclusion-just as millions of people were doing here at home and around the world. Each of us -- friend and foe alike -- were doing the dictates of our respective governments.

[goesh]

Good post/quote, Stan
I'm too lazy to dig around but it seems this came up before in SWC about the necessity of a quick end in the Pacific
the carnage would have made Attilla the Hun proud had we been forced to invade the Japanese mainland - about every available division would had to have gone ashore to be met with some fanatical civilian resistance - kids with sticks, women with kitchen knives, that sort of thing in support of their available military assets. Prior to the assault, most of the Pacific fleet would have first unleashed some horrific shelling and bombing would have gone non-stop for God only knows how long.

[Rob Thornton]

There was a quality to that generation all of its own. Farewell General Tibbets, we owe you a great debt.

[zenpundit]

General Tibbets could not have envisioned the impact of his actions at the time, very few ppl then could have, even among those who had worked on the Manhattan Project and witnessed the Trinity test, only a minority understood the magnitude of the consequences.

I imagine that if the same decision were to be taken today, in the current moral climate, the bomb would not be dropped and a massive, amphibious invasion of Japan would be launched. American troops would meet women, children and old men, armed only with sharpened bamboo spears, herded at gunpoint by the divisions of the Imperial Home Army, who would suicide charge into battle over the corpses of millions of their own civilians. Afterward, without the example of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, our wars would have been larger and perhaps, have gone nuclear.

It's not politically correct to discuss the realities of Imperial Japan's ruling elite these days but they were, in their way, moral monsters whose crimes were within reasonable shouting distance of those of their Nazi allies.General Tibbets carried a very large psychological burden throughout his very long life, on behalf of his country and fellow veterans ,whose lives were surely spared by the mission of the Enola Gay. Not once did he equivocate or retreat or like George Kennan, bow to intellectual fashion or cash in like so many in government service. He was a man of remarkable character and unassuming patriotism.

Rest in peace, General Tibbets.

[slapout9]

You forgot the most important part. He was from Montgomery,Al. and his surviving family still lives here.;)

[Rob Thornton]

.General Tibbets carried a very large psychological burden throughout his very long life, on behalf of his country and fellow veterans ,whose lives were surely spared by the mission of the Enola Gay. Not once did he equivocate or retreat or like George Kennan, bow to intellectual fashion or cash in like so many in government service. He was a man of remarkable character and unassuming patriotism.

Rest in peace, General Tibbets.

[wm]

Fellow Airmen
I know you are all busy providing our Air Force's critical capabilities in service to our great nation. I appreciate the sacrifices in time and effort you make on a daily basis. Please take a moment from your busy day and reflect with me on the recent passing of a great American who did his duty when our nation needed him most.
America lost a remarkable Airman on 1 November 2007 when retired Brigadier General Paul W. Tibbets, Jr., passed away. We all know General Tibbets as the pilot of the Enola Gay when it dropped the first atomic weapon on Imperial Japan, but there’s more to the man and his legacy for us to consider.
The consummate Airman, General Tibbets was a warrior and leader, renowned for his flying prowess and for always leading from the front. He piloted the lead bomber on the first Eighth Air Force bombing mission in Europe on 17 August 1942, later led the first heavy bombardment mission in conjunction with the invasion of North Africa, and commanded the 12-man crew of the Enola Gay on its courageous mission over Hiroshima in August 1945.
This single sortie opened a new chapter in air power. It established air power as America’s strategic sword and shield by clearly demonstrating air power’s ability to hold targets at risk anywhere in the world.
Today, the 509th Bomb Wing – the wing Tibbets himself once commanded – continues to deter and dissuade America’s enemies, flying the mighty B-2. While the size of our 21-aircraft B-2 inventory pales in comparison to the 47,500 bombers America had built by the end of World War II, unlike their predecessors, these strategic assets can flexibly launch from our own soil, fly half a world away, penetrate a country’s defenses undetected, and precisely deliver lethal payloads.
But such equipment is nothing without you – the Airmen that employ it. You continue to build on the legacy of General Tibbets, not only fighting the current long war, but also opening new chapters in air, space, and cyber power. Your daily efforts provide our nation with Global Vigilance, Global Reach, and Global Power now. Your foresight and innovation will also carry the asymmetric strategic advantages of our Air Force across the 21st Century.
Today let us remember the Tibbets legacy – the United States Air Force is a better combatant organization because of General Tibbets! Let us also never forget the disciplined combat focus required to fly, fight, and win for the United States of America.
Thank you for your continued dedicated service to our great country.

T. Michael Moseley
General, USAF
18th CSAF

The fourth paragraph provides an interesting summary of the USAF's understanding of itself.