I would guess we are talking about two things here; whether either "Bockscar" or "Enola Gay" have been restored back to the authentic condition and to what extent they have their original equipment, not just re-equipped with authentic equipment types. Yes, I, for one, would enjoy knowing how much on either plane actually flew with that plane.
Having said that, it is no secret that "Enola Gay" suffered from vandals and later from poor storage while under the "care, custody & control" of the Smithsonian, prior to their extensive restoration.
I have no idea of the condition of "Bockscar" was prior to it being actually flown to Dayton.
Here's a quote from the NMUSAF web site:
"The Boeing-designed B-29 #44-27297 was built by the Glenn L. Martin Co. at Omaha, Nebraska, at a cost of about $639,000. It was accepted by the USAAF on April 19, 1945 and was delivered to the 393rd Bomb Squadron at Wendover Field in the Utah salt flats. There aircrews of the 509th Composite Group were engaged in intensive training under a cloak of secrecy. In June, aircraft and crew flew to Tinian Island in the Marianas. From there, Bockscar, named for its pilot Frederick C. Bock, flew five bombing missions. On four of these, a 10,000 pound bomb loaded with high explosives was dropped. Nicknamed "pumpkin" bombs because of their shape and orange color, these were the same size and shape as the actual "fat man" atomic bomb dropped at Nagasaki. After Japan surrendered, Bockscar and the 393rd Bomb Squadron were reassigned to Roswell Field, New Mexico. In error, The Great Artiste was named in some official reports as the superfortress that dropped the atomic bomb at Nagasaki.
This mistake was discovered when preparations were being made to preserve the aircraft for later museum display. When the discrepancy was found, it was Bockscar that was retired in September 1946 to the desert storage facility at Davis-Monthan field near Tucson, Arizona. There it remained until September 1961 when it made one more flight, to Wright-Patterson AFB to become part of the growing collection of display aircraft at the U.S. Air Force Museum. Today about a million visitors each year view Bockscar, the aircraft that helped end the world's most costly war.
Notes: Serial number: 44-27297 (B-29-35-MO)" (end of quote)
As far as restoring "Bockscar" back to flying condition, why bother? Why risk it? This is a unique & important artifact and a very real touchstone to our history. It needs to be maintained safely to help future generations understand that time in our history.
IMHO, if you want to help B29's fly, support CAF's "FiFi" or support the restoration efforts for "Doc". If you have heard those four engines overhead and seen a B29 fly, well, it IS pretty unique and worthy of our support.
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, The Swoose, Memphis Belle, Flak Bait, etc...) EG or BC are not worth the risk for flying either way due to their historical significance.
