The night before the mission, Stiborik attended a Catholic mass, a moment of peace before the Hollywood-esque fanfare that would greet him at 2:30 AM the following morning. The week before the bombing mission in August 1945 was also difficult, as every member of the crew had to learn and memorize maps and other information about the bomb site.
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Stiborik and his fellow members of the 509 th trained hard in the coming years, learning how to maneuver and operate their aircraft under the conditions of a recently detonated atomic bomb without knowing why they were doing it. While stationed in Pensacola, Florida, Colonel Paul Tibbets visited Stiborik in his quarters, and convinced him to join the 509 th Composite Group, and the crew of the Enola Gay. He was sent to radar school to learn how to operate the radar systems on U.S. When World War II broke out, he volunteered for the Army Air Corps in October 1942. Joe Stiborik always wanted to fly planes, but was rejected due to his heredity colorblindness. Joseph went on to attend Texas A&M University, and married his wife Helen on August 1, 1938.
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His father worked as the editor of a Czech-language newspaper.
A first generation American, Stiborik’s parents emigrated from the highlands of Czechoslovakia. Stiborik was born on Decemin Hallettsville, Texas to Anton and Cecilia Najvar Stibork. On August 6, 1945, the Enola Gay dropped the Little Boy nuclear bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Stiborik served as a sergeant in the 393 rd Bombardment Squadron, a part of the 509 th Composite Group. He worked as a radar operator on the Enola Gay, helping to navigate the plane and watch for enemy aircraft.