North Field, Tinian

The Cessna to Tinian

When you go to the trouble of buying a plane ticket, one usually expects a larger vessel than this. Or at least my traveling buddy did - she nearly refused to board the darn thing! We started our trip to Tinian from the nearby (but more populated) island of Saipan.

Tinian from the air

Tinian sits in an island chain - the Marianas - that was crucial for the Japanese; successful American invasions spelled the beginning of the end of the war. This is the island of Tinian from a distance, with several of the long-abandoned World War II runways of North Field still quite visible.

Street Signs

The story goes that American servicemen thought Tinian similar in size and shape to the island of Manhattan, so they named the streets accordingly! That means you can still roll down Broadway today.

Runway Able, North Field

We headed out to the abandoned runways on the north end of the island. At one time this was part of the busiest airport in the world. But now the only thing taxiing around here is your rental car.

Abandoned bunker

A series of small bunkers surround the airfields and the installations. It's pretty much a requirement to peer inside each one.

Japanese Air Administration Building, North Field, Tinian

This is an interior view of the building that served as the Japanese Air Administration facility, but it was heavily expanded by the US military after they took the island. They also built four huge runways nearby, a project known as one of the largest construction feats ever undertaken and completed in record time.

Where the atomic age began

Under the trees and covered by a frame of metal and glass is the inconspicuous location where the first atomic bomb, the "Little Boy," was loaded onto a Superfortress bomber.

The Loading Pit

A closer look at the first facility built for the loading of an atomic bomb onto an airplane. It is the most apparent mark on the Tinian landscape that references the atomic undertaking and event.

Reclaimed Runway

As histories fade away, the jungle advances.

North Field from above

In this shot you can see two of the four runways, a big concrete apron with the Air Administration building nearby (top center) and the loading pits for the atomic bombs (small, heart-shaped clearing just below the coastline in the upper right). The Enola Gay took off from the right strip (Runway Able).

The Beach

The wheels of the B-29 Superfortress would have passed directly above this beach as the Enola Gay took off loaded with an atomic weapon, headed for Japan. Even with a view like this, history has a way of hanging around.