Bockscar was the B-29 bomber that dropped the atomic bomb on Nagasaki in 1945.
On August 9, 1945, Bockscar carried Fat Man, a plutonium implosion-type weapon, during the second atomic bombing mission. Major Charles W. Sweeney commanded the aircraft and its crew.
Nagasaki was the secondary target. Kokura had been designated the primary target, but smoke and cloud cover prevented the crew from making the required visual bombing run. After several attempts and concerns about fuel, Bockscar diverted to Nagasaki.
The aircraft’s name is often written as Bockscar, although it was originally painted with the phrase “Bockscar,” a reference to its regular commander, Captain Frederick C. Bock. Enola Gay, by contrast, dropped Little Boy on Hiroshima three days earlier.