1/144 B-29 Enola Gay
Boeing B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay scale: 1/144 base kit: Hobbycraft Boeing B-29A Superfortress "Bockscar" dimensions: 21 cm x 29 cm x 6 cm dates: July-August, 2005 cost: $15	Without getting into the complexities of the politics surrounding the issue, I think that it's safe to say that the Enola Gay was the most important aircraft in history, since it ushered in what I like to think of as the Global Era, where the world was connected and operated as a single entity, signified by the fact that one nation could fly a single plane and destroy an enemy city with a single bomb. This is the sort of power that thrills and terrifies me; I wish we had the sense to ban atomic weapons instead of build new ones. But enough of that. I bought the model in question at the March Field Air Museum in July, 2005, where a real B-29A Superfortress (44-61669) is on display. I decided to build the Enola Gay instead of the Bockscar on the basis of historical importance. This required modifying the kit a little by removing most of the armament (excepting the tail gun). I also had to draw on most of the markings by hand, since the decals for the Bockscar didn't do me any good. When I finished the model, I was stunned by how closely it resembled the real plane as it is on display at the National Air and Space Museum Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center at Dulles. (I have yet to visit the new museum and see it for myself.) I find it incredible and terrifying to have a representation of the world's first atomic bomber sitting on my shelf.
Photographs of the Model	image, image: The Enola Gay parked on the tarmac of Tinian. image: The Enola Gay roars aloft. image: A rear view of the Enola Gay in flight.
Photos and Graphics of the Actual Prototype	None (so far).
Copyright 2005 by Willy Logan. All rights reserved.	Willy Logan: Home