In part to silence potential criticism by U.S. senators over his use of government funds, Howard Hughes flies his gigantic H-4 Hercules cargo plane off the coast of Long Beach in 1947.
Dubbed the “Spruce Goose” by the media even though it’s almost entirely made of birch, the eight-engine plane has a 320-foot wingspan, the largest of any aircraft ever built. It’s also the biggest flying boat ever constructed. Henry Kaiser, the Oakland aluminum magnate, conceives the idea for the massive cargo plane during World War II. Delays cause Kaiser to drop out of the project but Hughes continues even though the prototype isn’t completed until well after the war ends.
Hughes, who says he put “the sweat of my life in this thing,” pilots the plane, accompanied by members of the media, a small flight crew and 16 mechanics. He fires up the propellers and lifts the giant aircraft 70 feet off the water, flying one mile in less than a minute before making a perfect landing.
The plane never flies again.
TOP PHOTO: “Hercules” (State Library Image 2008-2243)
The H-4 Hercules can be seen at the Evergreen Aviation Museum near Portland, Oregon. The plane’s old hangar near Los Angeles International Airport is now a movie sound stage.