by Old NFO has a very interesting post up about an abandoned airstrip located on the Pacific island of Tinian. What makes North Field and Runway Able of note is that it is where the instruments that ended WWII took off from.
Those instruments were two B-29s – the Enola Gay and Bockscar – which carried “Little Boy” and “Fat Man”. In other words, the planes that carried the atomic bombs that were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
My dad was in an Overseas Replacement Depot in Florida having returned from service with the Army in the Caribbean Defense Command. He could very well have been reassigned to Operation Downfall for the invasion of Japan. As it was, VJ Day was August 14th and my parents were married later that month.
Read Old NFO’s full account as it makes interesting reading for those interested in the history of WWII.
My Uncle Paul was back in the States recuperating from wounds he suffered during the Battle of the Bulge, and he was told that once he was declared "Fit for Duty," he 'd be joining the Forces needed for the Invasion of Japan.
But Hiroshima and Nagasaki put an end to that, and he never left the States.
So, to Quote Obama, using HIS Logic: "…if it saves just ONE life…"