‘My God what have we done’: Original logbook revealing ‘Enola Gay’ co-pilot’s tragic words after nuclear bomb was dropped on Hiroshima in 1945 sells for £450,000
- Attack on the city in August 1945 caused the deaths of up to 130,000 Japanese men, women and children
- The bomb, named Little Boy, was dropped by the crew of the B-29 bomber named Enola Gay
- Co-pilot Captain Robert A Lewis wrote a real-time account of the mission in his log book
- It sold for this week via Heritage Auctions in the US for $543,000 (£453,345)
A logbook featuring a first-hand account of the nuclear attack on the Japanese city of Hiroshima at the end of the Second World War has sold for more than £450,000.
The devastating attack on the city in August 1945 caused the deaths of up to 130,000 Japanese men, women and children.
The bomb, named Little Boy, was dropped by the crew of the B-29 bomber named Enola Gay and was the first atomic weapon used in warfare after successful tests carried out by the US.
Three days after the levelling of Hiroshima, the US dropped a second atomic weapon – Fat Man – on the city of Nagasaki. It was an act that took at least 40,000 more lives and forced the Japanese to finally surrender.
The log book was written during the mission by Captain Robert A Lewis, the co-pilot of the plane. In it, Captain Lewis revealed the extent of what had taken place.
He described the scene after the bomb was dropped as the ‘greatest explosion ever witnessed’, before adding: ‘Just how many did we kill? I honestly have the feeling of groping for words to explain this or I might say My God what have we done. If I live a hundred years I’ll never quite get those few minutes out of my mind.’
The document, which was written in both pen and then pencil after Captain Lewis ran out of ink, was sold this week via Heritage Auctions in the US for $543,000 (£453,345).
Captain Lewis compiled his real-time account after being approached by New York Times reporter William Laurence, who had been barred from being on the plane himself.
Captain Lewis’s account is the only contemporary record of the mission that exists.
A logbook featuring a real-time account of the nuclear attack on the Japanese city of Hiroshima at the end of the Second World War has sold for more than £450,000. The log book was written by Captain Robert Lewis, the co-pilot of the plane that dropped the bomb
The devastating attack on the city in August 1945 caused the deaths of up to 130,000 Japanese men, women and children
The bomb, named Little Boy, was dropped by the crew (pictured) of the B-29 bomber named Enola Gay and was the first atomic weapon used in warfare after successful tests carried out by the US
Enola Gay is seen landing after its infamous mission to drop a nuclear bomb on Hiroshima in August 1945
Although the crew had been aware that they were dropping an atomic bomb, none of them had any idea of the level of death and destruction that it would cause.
The team that Captain Lewis was part of was commanded by lead pilot Paul Tibbets.
In the research programme that was named the Manhatten Project, the US beat Nazi Germany and Japan to developing the atomic bomb.
When the technology was ready, the US opted to use it on Japan after the country’s leaders refused to surrender following Nazi Germany’s defeat in May 1945.
The crew of Enola Gay carried out their mission to bomb Hiroshima August 6. The bomb was detonated at an altitude of 1,750 feet and destroyed an area of approximately 4.7 square miles.
It was later estimated that 70 per cent of Hiroshima’s buildings were destroyed. At least 70,000 people were killed in the immediate moments after the bomb exploded, with more deaths coming later.
Captain Lewis described in his log book the progression of the flight and then the moments after the bomb had been dropped from the plane.
He wrote: ‘For the next minute no one knew what to expect, the bombardier and the right seat jockey or Pilot [Tibbetts] both forgot to put on their dark glasses and therefore witnessed the flash which was terrific… 15 seconds after the flash there were two very distinct slaps on the ship.
‘Then that was all the physical effects we felt. We then turned the ship so we could observe results, and there in front of our eyes was without a doubt !!! the greatest explosion man has ever witnessed.’
He then added: ‘I am certain the entire crew felt this experience was more than anyone [sic] human had ever thought possible. It just seems impossible to comprehend.’
The pilot went on to record the feelings of the dumbstruck crew.
The bomb was detonated at an altitude of 1,750 feet and destroyed an area of approximately 4.7 square miles. Above: The aftermath of the attack
It was later estimated that 70 per cent of Hiroshima’s buildings were destroyed. At least 70,000 people were killed in the immediate moments after the bomb exploded, with more deaths coming later
The ‘mushroom’ cloud that rose into the air after the detonation of the atomic bomb that was dropped on Hiroshima is seen above
He also wrote that he believed the Japanese would ‘give up before we land’ because ‘they certainly don’t care to have us drop any more bombs of atomic energy like this’.
However, the Japanese authorities still refused to surrender and so the US dropped the second bomb on Nagasaki.
The device was carried by the B-29 bomber named Bockscar. The detonation – on August 9 – was the second and, so far, last nuclear attack in history.
Japan then finally surrendered on August 15, with the decision broadcast to the Japanese people by the country’s Emperor.
Captain Lewis died of a heart attack at his home in Virginia in 1983 aged 65.
His log book was sold with a 1985 edition of Time Magazine that featured Captain Lewis’s chilling words.
When the Japanese authorities gave no indication that they were going to surrender, the US dropped the second bomb on Nagasaki. The device was carried by the B-29 bomber named Bockscar. The detonation – on August 9 – was the second and, so far, last nuclear attack in history. Above: The aftermath of the Nagasaki attack
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