Original: Paul Warfield Tibbets , Jr. ( February 23 , 1915 -- November 1 , 2007 ) was a brigadier general in the United States Air Force , best known for being the pilot of the Enola Gay , the first aircraft to drop an atomic bomb in the history of warfare .
Simplified: Paul Warfield Tibbets , Jr ( February 23 , 1915 -- November 1 , 2007 ) was a Brigadier general for the United States Air Force from 1937 to 1966 .