doublegunshop.com - home Forums General Discussion DoubleGun BBS @ doublegunshop.com The Day they dropped the Big One

If there can possibly be a lighter side to Pearl Harbor it would have to be the story a friend I worked with told. He married a Japanese girl and took her to Hawaii for their honeymoon. While visiting the memorial at Pearl he told his bride about how the planes came in from the sea (I forget the directions) and she said “no’ they came in over the mountains. He then said that his father had been there during the attack and he should know. Whereas she said her father was there as well and he had a much better view.

The Glomar Explorer did, indeed, raise a Soviet sub but was intended to get Russian code books, etc. They insisted that the important section broke off and was not recovered (Yeah, right). They also stated that the Soviet bodies were given a proper burial. I never saw anything suggesting an attack. Just another sunken Soviet sub.

Still have my fathers 1st gen Gibson Les Paul accoustic in it's orig tweed patterned hardcase and canvas cover. I can't play a cord, but that's ok. I still like the guitar. Some people have drouled over a few times.

Be sure to keep it tuned-up to A440 Chuck - those necks need that tension.

Red Star Rogue: The Untold Story of a Soviet Submarine's Nuclear Strike Attempt on the U. S., is the name of the book. Quite facinating but other than the location of the Soviet submarine way off its intended course, really nothing else of substance. -Dick

Correction. Major Charles Sweeney was in the left seat of the B-29 Bock's Car. Sweeney and Bock switched planes for the bombing of Nagasaki. Nagasaki was not the prime target that day as cloud cover prevented the bombing of Kokura. Nagasaki was almost spared that day as well but an opening in clouds provided an opportunity for the drop. I met General Sweeney and heard him speak of the mission back in the late 70's. He had no regrets. B-29 Bock's Car is on display at the USAF Museum near Wright-Patterson AFB in Dayton OH.

Fred Bock, aircraft commander of Bock's Car, who delivered the second bomb on Nagasaki three days later, forcing Japan to surrender and obviating the need for an assault on the home islands. K

One large device dropped by accident from high flying B-36? in early 50s. It was over New Mexico, Arizona, or .....can't remeber where, but it was very powerful one. Thank God it didn't detonate eh?

You are indeed correct and it was Sweeny who I talked with. Somewhere I have an autographed photo I paid $5 for of him.
An H-Bomb was dropped over the Carolinas as well as three off the coast of Spain. As the unoffical story goes, one of the bombs was one fail safe device away from actually dentonating and when this was found out, the failsafe mechanisms were changed.
The explosions that resulted were from the chemical explosive lenses that are used to trigger the bomb, going off. In order to have an actual ignition, the Bomb needs a source of neutrons at the moment of ignition without which you just have a chemical explosion. -Dick