Details:

Paul Tibbets and Charles Sweeney autographed glossy 8 x 10” black-and-white photograph depicting the two famed B-29 pilots shaking hands during a wartime gathering. Both men have boldly signed the photograph in blue ink.

Accompanying the photograph is a 6 x 4” card signed by both Paul Tibbets and Charles Sweeney. 

Fine condition overall. The accompanying signed card exhibits scattered spots of foxing.

This historically significant pairing brings together the signatures of the two pilots who commanded the only combat atomic bomb missions in history during World War II. Paul Tibbets piloted the B-29 Enola Gay on August 6, 1945, dropping the uranium bomb “Little Boy” over Hiroshima, Japan. Three days later, Charles Sweeney commanded the B-29 Bockscar during the Nagasaki mission, delivering the plutonium bomb “Fat Man.” Together, the two missions played a decisive role in the conclusion of the Second World War and ushered in the atomic age.

Paul W. Tibbets Jr. (1915-2007) was a brigadier general in the United States Air Force and commander of the 509th Composite Group, the specialized unit tasked with delivering the world’s first operational atomic weapons during World War II.

Charles W. Sweeney (1919-2004) was a major general in the United States Air Force and commander of the Nagasaki strike mission aboard Bockscar. Following the war, he continued his Air Force career and remained an important firsthand witness to the history of the atomic missions.

Authentication:
Includes a full letter of authenticity from JG Autographs, Inc.

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Reference sku: 11667 1416614-1