The Hughes H-4 Hercules flew exactly once - 70 feet above Long Beach harbor on November 2, 1947 - and remains the largest flying boat ever built.
TaildraggerThe Hughes H-4 Hercules flew exactly once on November 2, 1947 - one minute over Long Beach Harbor that proved a wooden giant could fly.
TaildraggerOn November 2, 1947, Howard Hughes flew the world's largest airplane - the H-4 Hercules - one mile across Long Beach Harbor, vindicating years of ridicule and an $18 million gamble.
TaildraggerThe Hughes H-4 Hercules flew just once in 1947, but its single minute over Long Beach Harbor silenced Senate critics and left an enduring mark on aviation engineering.
TaildraggerHow Howard Hughes built a 320-foot wooden flying boat, silenced Congress with a single 26-second flight, and created the most ambitious aircraft ever constructed.
TaildraggerThe Spruce Goose flew just one mile for 26 seconds in 1947, yet still holds the record for the longest wingspan of any aircraft ever flown.
TaildraggerOn November 2, 1947, Howard Hughes flew the wooden Spruce Goose one mile over Long Beach Harbor, proving critics wrong.
TaildraggerThe story of Howard Hughes' Spruce Goose, the wooden flying boat that flew just once in 1947 and outlived every critic.
TaildraggerHow Howard Hughes flew the Spruce Goose one mile off Long Beach in 1947 to prove his critics wrong.
TaildraggerThe Spruce Goose, Howard Hughes' all-wood flying boat, flew once for under a minute in 1947 and now lives in McMinnville, Oregon.
TaildraggerThe Hughes H-4 Hercules holds the record for the largest wingspan of any aircraft ever flown at 320 feet, and has called Oregon's Evergreen Aviation Museum home since 2001.
TaildraggerThe Spruce Goose flew just 26 seconds on November 2, 1947 - here's the story of Howard Hughes' birch-built H-4 Hercules.
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