When a bomb Exploded inside a B-29 Then flew Home

This is the story of a terrifying moment when a malfunction set off a bomb inside a B-29 Superfortress. With the crew facing a life-or-death struggle. How would they survive the disaster unfolding around them?

An Expected Accident

On April 12, 1945, cruising at 20,000 ft., 24-year-old Staff Sgt. Henry Eugene Irwin, part of the 52nd Bombardment Squadron, was in his B-29 Superfortress, nicknamed The City of Los Angeles. Their mission was to bomb the chemical plant in Koriyama, Japan. Irwin’s B-29 was the leading Superfortress, playing a vital role as the entire formation of B-29s depended on their accurate marking of the bomb target.

As they neared Koriyama, heavy flak started to fill the skies with thick black smoke and deadly shrapnel. The leading B-29 was always the most vulnerable to initial flak strikes and enemy aircraft. As soon as they’re detected, the formation has a strict 10-minute window before being intercepted by the formidable Nakajima K-44s. Irwin was in charge of dropping smoke phosphorus bombs to mark the target. Usually, 8 seconds after these bombs are dropped, they would explode in a shimmer of flares.

He started removing the bomb pin and loading his phosphorus bomb. However, two seconds later, the faulty bomb detonates inside the chute. Burning at 1500 degrees, the phosphorus instantly vaporizes Irwin’s ear and nose, whilst damaging his eyes. He was blind.

A Nearly Impossible Feat

In shock and extreme pain, Irwin stumbles down onto the deck. In an instant, the interior was filled with dense smoke, obscuring the vision of the crew. Also, enemy K-44s had started intercepting the formation. They had a ticking time bomb in the back while diving in the middle of flak and enemy fighters. The situation was grim. The crew had mere seconds to come up with a solution.

Without any regard for his safety, he finally finds and picks up the bomb with his bare hands, holding it as it burns through his arms while feeling his way towards the cockpit. He recalls, “It was like dipping my hand for liquid fire for 22 seconds.”

Irwin would then come across co-pilot Lt. Roy Stables. He screams at him to open the window and finally manages to shove the bomb out of the window and collapses to the floor afterward.

The smoke inside the plane rapidly cleared, and the crew’s visibility returned, apart from Irwin’s. Co-pilot, Lt. Roy Stables, extinguishes Irwin’s flaming body with a fire extinguisher. As a stroke of luck, the aircraft’s dive allowed them to dodge anti-aircraft fire and enemy fighters busy attacking the main formation. Staff Sgt. Henry Eugene Irwin saved the B-29 and its crew that day. Without his heroic actions, the B-29 would have exploded mid-air or crashed into the ocean before the crew realized what had happened.

Twist of Fate

The B-29 quickly aborted its mission and headed towards the captured Iwo Jima to save Irwin. At the base, the doctors informed the crew that Irwin was not expected to live past a day. However, with the comfort of his crew remaining by his bedside, the young man started to make an unexpectedly strange but astonishing recovery.

Henry Irwin endures 41 painful plastic surgeries and survives. He would go on to serve his country for another 37 years well into the Cold War and passed away in 2002 at 80 years old.