B-29 Name Charts

FEBRUARY – MARCH 1945

•  Most crews gave their aircraft nicknames, which were painted on the side of the aircraft.
• When the 6th Bomb Group aircraft first entered service in February, they did not have a lot of decoration.
• A name might be stenciled on the side and the rudder might have the old rudder markings.
• By the end of the war, all of the aircraft had the “Circle R” on the rudder. Lead aircraft had vertical stripes on the rudder.

APRIL – AUGUST 1945

• The aircraft group number appears on the front bottom and the sides of rear fuselage.
• The aircraft serial number is sometimes shown on the tail.
• Later in the war, the aircraft were painted red on the tip of the tail and on the engine cowlings. This was presumably done to help the groups form up after takeoff. Aircraft used to drop supplies to POWs after the war had POW SUPPLIES written on the bottom of the wings.

THE 6TH BOMB GROUP FLEW B-29s, INCLUDING B-29As AND B-29Bs. Almost all crews gave nicknames to their airplanes. Initially, the nicknames were just painted on the side. Later, the crews began to also decorate their aircraft with artwork, often of scantily-clad women. In response to complaints from the home front, many Group commanders censored the pictures. The 6th Bomb Group avoided the problem by issuing an order requiring that all aircraft bear the pirate insignia. The decoration around the pirate insignia evolved over time. Some early examples are plain. Others show a black circle behind the insignia. Later aircraft show a white circle behind the insignia. Initially, the aircraft nickname was simply painted to the rear of the insignia. Other planes inserted the insignia in trailing red and white flames. The final version of the insignia was fairly standardized. However, the script used to write the names could vary. Artwork was improved as time permitted. The older paint jobs were not always updated immediately. Some crews did not get around to painting the names on the aircraft. On any given mission, the planes could have different styles of markings.

24th SQUADRON

NOTE: These Name Charts are still being worked on and are not official.

39th Squadron

NOTE: The B-29 planes were originally assigned lower numbers – for example, plane #35 was originally #25.

40th Squadron

Note: The planes were originally assigned lower numbers – for example, planes #53 was originally #33.

Squadron Unknown