There is a saying “not all heroes wear capes”, which explains how heroes exist in all capacities, not only as the super heroes seen on TV. The first everyday heroes that come to my mind are veterans. Those that fought for freedom, and defended our country from attack. However, not all Veterans physically fought in conflicts. Some, like Joe Hagerman, offered honorary service to their country in other ways.
Mr. Hagerman was a mechanical engineer during World War ll. After getting his degree at the University of Alabama, he began his work on the development of B-29 bombers in Marietta Georgia.
B-29 bombers, most notably the B-29 Superfortress, played a significant role in World War ll. The B-29 Superfortress models were the airplanes used to drop atomic bombs on the Japanese cities Hiroshima and Nagasaki towards the end of the war. The decision to drop atomic weaponry on Japan is often regarded as the choice that ended the war, however it also cost an estimated 100,000 lives. This number includes not only men, but also uninvolved women and children. The B-29 bombers, being the responsible carriers of this destruction, as well as many other bombings, are sometimes referred to as the most controversial bombers in history.
The B-29 bombers were highly advanced propeller-driven aircrafts that could carry heavier objects, for longer amounts of time, at higher altitudes, than any plane ever before. But how did we create these planes? Were inexperienced soldiers putting together planes when they weren’t engaging in combat? No! They had specifically trained men putting together, and checking these planes for error consistently.
This job was not easy. Extensive knowledge of engineering was needed in order to make sure these B-29 bombers were reliable, as well as safe. The work of testing and checking the planes to make sure they were ready for action was tedious, hard work. Mr. Hagerman sometimes took shifts 36 hours long! Can you imagine examining a plane for three days straight? Many of the planes had issues in the beginning, so this work became very necessary to ensure errors were not made during construction that could be fatal to the American soldiers, or cause our bombing mission to go wrong.
The more Mr. Hagerman worked on the B-29 bombers the deeper his understanding of what they meant for World War ll became. He knew the dropping of the first atomic bomb would cause the war to terminate quickly thereafter.
That it did. Only 27 days passed between the first atomic bombing and the Japanese surrender.
Mr. Hagerman loved what he did. It wasn’t easy by any means, and not always fun, but it was his passion. What he loved to do not only fulfilled him, but also aided his country in a hard time of war. When he left service, he received a trophy of a B-29 bomber, with an engraving that read “Thank you for helping us win the war.”The work that he did was that of a true patriot.
