Up An' Atom
Encyclopedia
Up An' Atom was the name of a B-29 Superfortress
(B-29-36-MO 44-27304, victor number 88) configured during World War II
in the Silverplate
project to carry an atomic bomb.
, it was built at the Glenn L. Martin Aircraft Plant
at Omaha, Nebraska
, and accepted by the Army Air Forces on April 3, 1945, and flown to Wendover Army Air Field, Utah
, by its assigned crew B-10 (Capt. George W. Marquardt, Aircraft Commander). It departed Wendover for Tinian
on June 11 and arrived on June 17.
It was originally assigned the victor number 8 but on August 1 was given the triangle N tail markings of the 444th Bomb Group as a security measure and had its victor changed to 88 to avoid misidentification with actual 444th BG aircraft. It was named and had its nose art painted after the Nagasaki mission. The name is a word play on the colloquial idiom
"Up and at 'em", meaning "There is a lot of work to be done," and referencing the unit's atomic mission.
While at Tinian, Marquadt and crew B-10 flew Up An' Atom on eight training and practice bombing missions and pumpkin bomb
missions against industrial targets in Taira
and Hamamatsu, Japan
. Capt. Bob Lewis's crew B-9 flew it on a pumpkin bomb mission to Tokushima subsequent to the Hiroshima mission
, and Lt.Col. James Hopkins and crew C-14 used it to attack Nagoya with a pumpkin bomb.
Up An' Atom returned to the United States with the 509th CG in November 1945 to Roswell Army Airfield
. From April to August 1946 it was assigned to the Operation Crossroads
task force. In August 1949 it became part of the 97th Bomb Wing at Biggs Air Force Base, Texas
, and was re-configured as a TB-29 trainer in April 1950 by the Oklahoma City Air Materiel Area at Tinker Air Force Base
.
Its subsequent assignments were to:
Up An' Atom was dropped from the Air Force inventory in November 1956. It was transferred to the U.S. Navy and used as a target at the Naval Ordnance Test Station at China Lake
, California
.
, serials 68-0269 and 68-0272, carried the name and original nose art of Up An' Atom on their nosewheel doors while based at Pease Air Force Base, New Hampshire
, in the 1970s and 1980s.
uses "Up An' Atom" as his catchphrase.
B-29 Superfortress
The B-29 Superfortress is a four-engine propeller-driven heavy bomber designed by Boeing that was flown primarily by the United States Air Forces in late-World War II and through the Korean War. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft to see service during World War II...
(B-29-36-MO 44-27304, victor number 88) configured during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in the Silverplate
Silverplate
Silverplate was the code reference for the United States Army Air Forces participation in the Manhattan Project during World War II. Originally the name for the aircraft modification project for the B-29 Superfortress to enable it to drop an atomic weapon, Silverplate eventually came to identify...
project to carry an atomic bomb.
Airplane history
Assigned to the 393rd Bomb Squadron, 509th Composite Group509th Operations Group
The 509th Operations Group is the flying component of the United States Air Force 509th Bomb Wing , assigned to Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri. It is equipped with all 20 of the USAF's B-2 Spirit stealth bombers...
, it was built at the Glenn L. Martin Aircraft Plant
Glenn L. Martin Company
The Glenn L. Martin Company was an American aircraft and aerospace manufacturing company that was founded by the aviation pioneer Glenn L. Martin. The Martin Company produced many important aircraft for the defense of the United States and its allies, especially during World War II and the Cold War...
at Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha, Nebraska
Omaha is the largest city in the state of Nebraska, United States, and is the county seat of Douglas County. It is located in the Midwestern United States on the Missouri River, about 20 miles north of the mouth of the Platte River...
, and accepted by the Army Air Forces on April 3, 1945, and flown to Wendover Army Air Field, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, by its assigned crew B-10 (Capt. George W. Marquardt, Aircraft Commander). It departed Wendover for Tinian
Tinian
Tinian is one of the three principal islands of the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.-Geography:Tinian is about 5 miles southwest of its sister island, Saipan, from which it is separated by the Saipan Channel. It has a land area of 39 sq.mi....
on June 11 and arrived on June 17.
It was originally assigned the victor number 8 but on August 1 was given the triangle N tail markings of the 444th Bomb Group as a security measure and had its victor changed to 88 to avoid misidentification with actual 444th BG aircraft. It was named and had its nose art painted after the Nagasaki mission. The name is a word play on the colloquial idiom
Idiom
Idiom is an expression, word, or phrase that has a figurative meaning that is comprehended in regard to a common use of that expression that is separate from the literal meaning or definition of the words of which it is made...
"Up and at 'em", meaning "There is a lot of work to be done," and referencing the unit's atomic mission.
While at Tinian, Marquadt and crew B-10 flew Up An' Atom on eight training and practice bombing missions and pumpkin bomb
Pumpkin bomb
Pumpkin bombs were conventional high explosive aerial bombs developed by the Manhattan Project and used by the United States Army Air Forces against Japan during World War II...
missions against industrial targets in Taira
Iwaki
-Places:*Iwaki, Fukushima: a city in Japan.*Iwaki, Akita: a town in Japan.*Iwaki Province: an old province of Japan.*Iwaki : a volcano on the Japanese island of Honshū....
and Hamamatsu, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. Capt. Bob Lewis's crew B-9 flew it on a pumpkin bomb mission to Tokushima subsequent to the Hiroshima mission
Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki
During the final stages of World War II in 1945, the United States conducted two atomic bombings against the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in Japan, the first on August 6, 1945, and the second on August 9, 1945. These two events are the only use of nuclear weapons in war to date.For six months...
, and Lt.Col. James Hopkins and crew C-14 used it to attack Nagoya with a pumpkin bomb.
Up An' Atom returned to the United States with the 509th CG in November 1945 to Roswell Army Airfield
Walker Air Force Base
Walker Air Force Base is a closed United States Air Force base located three miles south of the central business district of Roswell, a city in Chaves County, New Mexico, US...
. From April to August 1946 it was assigned to the Operation Crossroads
Operation Crossroads
Operation Crossroads was a series of nuclear weapon tests conducted by the United States at Bikini Atoll in mid-1946. It was the first test of a nuclear weapon after the Trinity nuclear test in July 1945...
task force. In August 1949 it became part of the 97th Bomb Wing at Biggs Air Force Base, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
, and was re-configured as a TB-29 trainer in April 1950 by the Oklahoma City Air Materiel Area at Tinker Air Force Base
Tinker Air Force Base
Tinker Air Force Base is a major U.S. Air Force base, with tenant U.S. Navy and other Department of Defense missions, located in the southeast Oklahoma City, Oklahoma area, directly south of the suburb of Midwest City, Oklahoma.-Overview:...
.
Its subsequent assignments were to:
- 112th Radar Calibration Squadron, Hamilton Air Force BaseHamilton Air Force BaseHamilton Air Force Base was a United States Air Force base located along the western shore of San Pablo Bay, south of Novato, California.-History:...
, CaliforniaCaliforniaCalifornia is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
(October 1951), - 4th Radar Calibration Squadron, Hamilton AFB (February 1953),
- 4754th Radar Evaluation Flight, Hamilton AFB (March 1954),
- Mobile Air Materiel Area, NashvilleNashville, TennesseeNashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
, TennesseeTennesseeTennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
(March 1955) - 17th Tow Target Squadron, Vincent Air Force BaseMarine Corps Air Station YumaMarine Corps Air Station Yuma or MCAS Yuma is a United States Marine Corps air station which is the home to multiple squadrons of AV-8B Harrier IIs of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, Marine Aviation Weapons and Tactics Squadron 1 and Marine Fighter Training Squadron 401 , an air combat adversary...
, ArizonaArizonaArizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
(May 1955).
Up An' Atom was dropped from the Air Force inventory in November 1956. It was transferred to the U.S. Navy and used as a target at the Naval Ordnance Test Station at China Lake
Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake
- About : is part of under Commander, Navy Installation Command and is located in the Western Mojave Desert region of California, approximately north of Los Angeles. Occupying three counties – Kern, San Bernardino and Inyo – the installation’s closest neighbors are the cities of Ridgecrest,...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
Other aircraft named Up An' Atom
Two FB-111A strategic bombers of the USAF 509th Bomb Wing509th Bomb Wing
The 509th Bomb Wing is a United States Air Force unit assigned to the Air Force Global Strike Command, Eighth Air Force. It is stationed at Whiteman Air Force Base, Missouri....
, serials 68-0269 and 68-0272, carried the name and original nose art of Up An' Atom on their nosewheel doors while based at Pease Air Force Base, New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
, in the 1970s and 1980s.
Cultural references
The character Radioactive Man from The SimpsonsThe Simpsons
The Simpsons is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical parody of a middle class American lifestyle epitomized by its family of the same name, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa and Maggie...
uses "Up An' Atom" as his catchphrase.
Sources
- Campbell, Richard H., The Silverplate Bombers: A History and Registry of the Enola Gay and Other B-29s Configured to Carry Atomic Bombs (2005), ISBN 0-7864-2139-8
- 509th CG Aircraft Page, MPHPA