Case Study - Near Failture at Nasigant

Facts

• The primary target was Kokura, but the bomb, “Fat Man” was dropped at the secondary target, Nagasaki.

• The mission was planned for Aug. 11 but a forecast for bad weather moved it up to Aug. 9.

• Col. Paul W. Tibbets Jr. who successfully completed Hiroshima mission promoted Maj. Charles W. Sweeney, who had no previous combat experience as commander for the mission.

• Navy commander Frederick L Ashworth was one of the three mission specialists whose job was to make “no drop” call if something went wrong with the detonating system.

• The rear bomb bay bladder was not pumping.

• 600 out of the 7,250 gallons of fuel were in the reserve tank.

• The actual rendezvous was 22,000 feet higher than Sweeney expected, consuming additional fuel.

• Big Stink missed rendezvous and Hopkins broke radio silence and radioed back to Tinian which it terminated the emergency air-sea rescue preparations.

• The mission was off to a late start and the three aircrafts must proceed right after them made rendezvous.

• Ashworth wasn’t informed the instrument aircraft met the rendezvous. Sweeney circled the rendezvous for additional 45 minutes to wait for observation/photo airplane, Big Stink.

• The target for this mission needed to be bombed visually. The bad weather condition let Sweeney and Ashworth decided to drop the bomb by radar.

• The “Fact Man” wasn’t dropped on the original aiming point, which resulted in lower number of death toll.

Issues

• Weak Leadership

• Decision Making

• Crisis Management

Weak Leadership

+ -

Solution A:

Delegate more effectively (Replace and Take over) • More effective leadership

• Save time and resources

• More creative, practical rational, analytic and empathetic.

• High ability to complete the task • Chances that the commander may even worse

• Short of human resource

Solution B:

Focus on task and interpersonal relationship • mission will carry more smoothly within the