The term GAY (WARPLANE) is a reference to the Enola Gay, a Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber that was used by the United States Army Air Forces during World War II. The plane was named after the mother of its pilot, Colonel Paul Tibbets, and was used to drop the first atomic bomb on Hiroshima, Japan on August 6, 1945. The Enola Gay is one of the most famous aircraft in history and is remembered for its role in ending the war.