RE: Arming Mechanisms Auctioned for $167,500

["Kolb, William (WKOLB)" <WKOLB@arinc.com>]

At least one of these plugs was within arms reach on the A-bomb at the Air

and Space Museum's Enola Gay exhibit in Washington, D.C. There was also a

description of its function. Unless terrorists have acquired an actual WWII

"Little Boy" to go with it, I fail to see why this is a security problem now

and wasn't a security problem at the exhibit. As John Stossel is fond of

saying, "Give me a break!"



Bill

WM Kolb

ARINC Inc.



		-----Original Message-----

		From:	Minnema, Douglas

[mailto:Douglas.Minnema@nnsa.doe.gov]

		Sent:	Thursday, June 13, 2002 9:06 AM

		To:	Radsafe BBS

		Subject:	RE: Arming Mechanisms Auctioned for $167,500



		John,



		These plugs were fairly simple safety devices that were

inserted into the

		body of the weapon from outside the casing.  I don't know

how they

		functioned exactly, but they apparently interrupted the

firing circuits

		while they were in place.  One of the last responsibilities

of the Enola Gay

		crew before dropping the bomb was to pull these plugs.  As I

understand it,

		a crew member had to crawl into the bomb bay to get to them.



		Seems to me that these were described in Rhoades book, "The

Making of the

		Atomic Bomb", as well as in other descriptions of the event.



		Doug Minnema



		-----Original Message-----

		From: john grant [mailto:grantjoh@pacbell.net]

		Sent: Wednesday, June 12, 2002 7:24 PM

		To: Radsafe BBS

		Subject: Re: Arming Mechanisms Auctioned for $167,500









		"Richard F. Orthen" wrote:



		> >From today's IEM newslaunch.  It's hard to believe that

the arming

		> mechanisms wouldn't have been curated in a museum.

		>

		> June 12, 2002 - Associated Press - U.S. Tries to Stop

Atomic Bomb Sale -

		> Parts from the atomic bomb dropped over Hiroshima were

auctioned for

		> $167,500 Tuesday - but the government says the sale is a

breach of

		national

		> security and wants to block it. Pending the outcome of

litigation by the

		> Justice Department, Butterfields Auctioneers Inc. agreed

to hold onto the

		> arming mechanisms from the bomb dropped from the Enola

Gay. The B-29

		bomber

		> dropped the atomic bomb over Hiroshima, Japan, on Aug. 6,

1945, killing

		> roughly 140,000 people.



		Can someone tell us more about this arming device and why it

did not go down

		with the bomb?



		John Grant



	

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