 Silverplate was the code reference for the United States Army Air Forces ' participation in the Manhattan Project during World War II . Originally the name for the aircraft modification project for the B @-@ 29 Superfortress bomber to enable it to drop an atomic weapon , Silverplate eventually came to identify the training and operational aspects of the program as well . The original directive for the project had as its subject line " Silver Plated Project " but continued usage of the term shortened it to " Silverplate " . 
