The “Spruce Goose” is one of the most iconic and mysterious aircraft in aviation history. Officially named the Hughes H-4 Hercules, this colossal flying boat was the brainchild of eccentric billionaire aviator and engineer Howard Hughes. Designed during World War II to transport troops and materials across the Atlantic, it would ultimately fly only once—for less than a minute. But why did this engineering marvel, once the largest aircraft in the world, take to the skies just a single time?
The Birth of the Spruce Goose
During the early 1940s, Allied shipping convoys were being ravaged by German U-boats. In response, the U.S. government sought new ways to move men and materials without relying on vulnerable ocean vessels. Henry Kaiser, a shipbuilding magnate, proposed the idea of a massive flying cargo ship and brought in Howard Hughes to build it.
Because of wartime restrictions on metals, the aircraft was made almost entirely of wood—specifically birch, despite the nickname "Spruce Goose." The plane was enormous: 218 feet wide, 97.5 feet long, and designed to carry 750 troops or two Sherman tanks.
Development Delays and Controversy
From the start, the project was plagued with delays, cost overruns, and technical challenges. Hughes was known for his obsessive perfectionism, and he refused to cut corners. What was meant to be a quick wartime solution stretched far beyond the war’s end—the plane wasn’t completed until 1947, two years after Japan surrendered.
Critics in Congress lambasted the project as a boondoggle, calling it a waste of taxpayer money. Hughes, fiercely proud and defiant, insisted on demonstrating that the aircraft could fly.
The Only Flight
On November 2, 1947, Howard Hughes climbed into the cockpit of the H-4 himself. With a small crew onboard and dozens of reporters watching from boats in Long Beach Harbor, he taxied the massive plane along the water during a supposed "test."
Then, unexpectedly, Hughes opened the throttles. The Spruce Goose lifted off the water and flew about 70 feet above the surface for roughly 26 seconds, covering just under a mile before gently landing again.
It had flown—but just once.