2001 interview with Paul Tibbets, the pilot who dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima

The nationwide premiere of “Oppenheimer“ debuts in theaters on Friday, telling the story of J. Robert Oppenheimer and his top-secret Manhattan Project. Oppenheimer and a team of scientists spent years developing and designing the atomic bomb. In August 1942, the U.S. Army was given the responsibility of organizing the efforts of British and U.S. physicists to seek a way to harness nuclear energy for military purposes. That effort became known as the Manhattan Project. Oppenheimer was instructed to establish and administer a laboratory to carry out this assignment. In 1943, he chose the plateau of Los Alamos near Santa Fe, New Mexico. Their work came to fruition on July 16, 1945, as they witnessed the world’s first nuclear explosion in New Mexico, forever changing the course of history. But what central Ohioan’s may not know is that a man who lived in Columbus was the pilot of the plane that carried the bomb. Paul Tibbets was 29-years old when he entered the cockpit to pilot the Enola Gay, named after his mother. In 2001, he sat down for an interview with 10TV’s Kevin Landers to talk about the events leading up to and after he dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan. Tibbets talked about how he was handpicked to fly the B-29. “I had more experience with the B-29 than anybody. I said ’boy I’m glad they give it to me. I will do it.’ And by doing so I may take some lives, but I’ll save many more. That’s the thought that ruled me all the way through,” he said. On Aug. 5, 1945, at a cost of $2 billion, the military unveiled the atomic bomb. It weighed 9,700 pounds. Before the crew took of their mission, Tibbets says they were given cynaide pills in case they were captured. On Aug. 6, Tibbets and his crew take off. “It was the most boring flight I ever made, because nothing went wrong,” he said. Twelve hours and 15 minutes into the flight, the Enola Gay is over the city of Hiroshima. Tibbets recalled the color of the sky after he banked away from the drop zone. “The sky in front of me lit up like nothing you had ever seen. And then wham, we got hit by that shockwave,” he said. Tibbets said he had 41 seconds to get the plane 10 miles away from the blast area out of fear they would be killed by the radiation cloud “The first shockwave registered 2.5 g forces on the airplane, that was a good kick in the pants,” he said Tibbetts wore welder goggles to protect himself from the brightness of the blast, but soon realized he couldn’t see the control panel in front of him so he took them off. He recalled flying from the area and still was able to taste the radiation. “I was in the turn when that happened; then I tasted it. I tell people it was like putting a piece of metal in your mouth like a sucker,” he said. More than 20 tons of TNT would drop on Hiroshima, killing 70,000 people. Radiation sickness would kill thousands more. The temperature at the center of the bomb reached 120 million degrees. “I’ve been asked directly, would you do it again? If you give me the same circumstances I would not hesitate and I’ve never lost a night’s sleep,” he said. Tibbets died in November 2007 at the age of 92. Memorabilia from Tibbets’ career is on display not at Motts Military Museum in Groveport.