Hughes H-4 Hercules

The Spruce Goose is the nickname commonly given to the Hughes H-4 Hercules, an aircraft designed and built by the Hughes Aircraft company, owned by Howard Hughes. The nickname arose as a way of mocking the Hercules project due to Hughes' alleged misuse of government funding to build the aircraft. The Hercules is the largest flying boat, and has the largest wingspan of any aircraft ever built. Only one was built. Image File history File links H-4 Hercules, The Spruce Goose source: [1] [2] File links The following pages link to this file: Howard Hughes Spruce Goose Seaplane Hughes Aircraft Category:Seaplanes and flying boats Categories: United States government images ... Image File history File links H-4 Hercules, The Spruce Goose source: [1] [2] File links The following pages link to this file: Howard Hughes Spruce Goose Seaplane Hughes Aircraft Category:Seaplanes and flying boats Categories: United States government images ... Hughes logo adopted after his death Hughes developed the AIM-120 AMRAAM, one of the worlds most advanced air-to-air missiles Hughes Aircraft Company was a major defense/aerospace company founded by Howard Hughes. ... For other people named Howard Hughes, see Howard Hughes (disambiguation). ... Boeing 314 A flying boat is an aircraft that is designed to take off and land on water, in particular a type of seaplane which uses its fuselage as a floating hull (instead of pontoons mounted below the fuselage). ...

Due to wartime restrictions on the availability of metals, the H-4 was built almost entirely of laminated birch, not spruce as its nickname suggests. The aircraft was a marvel in its time. It married a soon-to-be outdated technology — flying boats — to a massive airframe that required some truly ingenious engineering innovations. Hughes himself detested the nickname "Spruce Goose". Species Many species; see text and classification Birch is the name of any tree of the genus Betula, in the family Betulaceae, closely related to the beech/oak family, Fagaceae. ... Species About 35; see text. ...

History

In 1942, the U.S. Department of War was faced with the need to transport war materiel and personnel to Britain. Allied shipping in the Atlantic Ocean was suffering heavy losses to German U-boats, so a requirement was issued for an aircraft that could cross the Atlantic with a large payload. The United States Department of War was the military department of the United States governments executive branch from 1789 until 1949, when it became part of the United States Department of Defense. ... Materiel (from the French for material) is the equipment and supplies in Military and commercial supply chain management. ... U-boat is also a nickname for some diesel locomotives built by GE; see List of GE locomotives October 1939. ...

The aircraft was the brainchild of Henry J. Kaiser, who directed the Liberty ships program. He teamed with aircraft designer Howard Hughes to create what would become the largest aircraft built or even seriously contemplated at that time. When completed, it would be capable of carrying 750 fully-equipped troops or two Sherman tanks. Henry J. Kaiser perches above Hawaii Kai in April 1963, his suburban development in Honolulu. ... SS is one of only two surviving Liberty ships. ... For other people named Howard Hughes, see Howard Hughes (disambiguation). ... General characteristics Length: 5. ...

To conserve metal for the war effort, it would be built mostly of wood: hence the Spruce Goose moniker. It was also referred to as the Flying Lumberyard by critics who believed an aircraft of its size simply could not fly.

Development dragged on and was not completed until well after the war was over. In 1947, Howard Hughes was called to testify before the Senate War Investigating Committee over the usage of government funds for the aircraft, as Congress was eliminating war-era spending to free up Federal funds for domestic projects. Though he encountered skepticism and even hostility from the committee, Hughes remained unruffled. During a break in the hearings, he returned to California, ostensibly to run engine tests on the H-4. On November 2, 1947 with Howard Hughes personally at the controls, the Spruce Goose lifted off from the waters off Long Beach, remaining airborne 70 feet (20 m) off the water at a speed of 80 mph (130 km/h) for just under a mile (1.6 km). At this altitude the plane was still in ground effect and some critics believe it was too lacking in power to truly fly. The Senate War Investigating Committee was formed by Ralph Owen Brewster in 1947 to investigate contracts delivered to Hughes Aircraft for the Hughes XF-11 and Spruce Goose. ... A congress is a gathering of people, especially a gathering for a political purpose. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 3rd 410,000 km² 402. ... November 2 is the 306th day of the year (307th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 59 days remaining. ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... County Los Angeles County, California Area  - Total  - Water 170. ... Ground effect (or Wing In Ground effect) is a phenomenon of aerodynamics where the flow of air around part of an aircraft or a racing car is interrupted by the ground. ...

Hughes had proved the critics wrong, but the justification for continued spending on the project was gone. Congress killed the Spruce Goose project, and the aircraft never flew again. It was carefully maintained in flying condition until Hughes's death in 1976. 1976 (MCMLXXVI) was a leap year starting on Thursday (the link is to a full 1976 calendar). ...

The plane was also featured in The Aviator, which was about the life of Howard Hughes. The Aviator is a 2004 biographical drama film, directed by Martin Scorsese. ...

Spruce Goose at Evergreen Aviation Museum

In 1980 the Spruce Goose was acquired by the California Aero Club, who successfully put the aircraft on display in a large dome adjacent to the Queen Mary Exhibit in Long Beach, California. In 1988 The Walt Disney Company acquired both attractions. Unexcited by the lackluster revenue the Spruce Goose Exhibit generated, Disney began to look for another organization to take it off its hands. After a long search for a qualified buyer, the plane was acquired by the Evergreen Aviation Museum in 1993, who disassembled the aircraft and moved it by barge to its current home in McMinnville, Oregon (about an hour southwest of Portland) where it has been on display since. Image File history File links The Spruce Goose as seen from the Evergreen Aviation Museum. ... Image File history File links The Spruce Goose as seen from the Evergreen Aviation Museum. ... The Evergreen Aviation Museum is an aviation museum which displays a number of military and civilian aircraft, most notably, the Spruce Goose. ... RMS Queen Mary was a Cunard Line (then Cunard White Star Line) ocean liner that sailed the North Atlantic Ocean from 1936 to 1967. ... County Los Angeles County, California Area  - Total  - Water 170. ... Official language(s) English Capital Sacramento Largest city Los Angeles Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 3rd 410,000 km² 402. ... 1988 (MCMLXXXVIII) was a leap year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Walt Disney Company (most commonly known as Disney) (NYSE: DIS) is one of the largest media and entertainment corporations in the world. ... The Evergreen Aviation Museum is an aviation museum which displays a number of military and civilian aircraft, most notably, the Spruce Goose. ... McMinnville is a city located in Yamhill County, Oregon. ... Nickname: City of Roses, Stumptown, Bridgetown Motto: Official website: http://www. ...

By the mid-1990s, Hollywood converted the former Hughes Aircraft hangars, including the one that held the Spruce Goose, into sound stages. Scenes from movies such as Titanic, What Women Want, and End of Days have been filmed on location in the 315,000 square foot (29,000 m²) airplane hangar where Howard Hughes created the legendary flying boat. The hangar will be preserved as a structure eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Buildings in what is today the housing development Playa Vista. Titanic is an Academy Award winning 1997 dramatic film released by Paramount Pictures and 20th Century Fox. ... What Women Want is a 2000 romantic comedy film, directed by Nancy Meyers. ... End of Days is a 1999 action/horror film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and directed by Peter Hyams. ... The National Register of Historic Places is the USAs official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects worthy of preservation. ... Playa Vista is a neighborhood in southwestern Los Angeles, California. ...

Though the project was a failure, the H-4 Hercules in some senses presaged the massive transport aircraft of the late 20th century, such as the Lockheed C-5 Galaxy and the Antonov An-124 and An-225. The Spruce Goose demonstrated that the physical and aerodynamic principles which make flight possible are not limited by the size of the aircraft. The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is one of the largest military aircraft in the world. ... Antonov An-124-100 The Antonov An-124 Ruslan (NATO reporting name: Condor) is the largest aircraft ever mass produced, and was, until the advent of the Antonov An-225, the largest aircraft in production. ... An-225 carrying a Buran shuttle The Antonov An-225 Mriya (Антонов Ан-225 Мрія, NATO reporting name: Cossack) is a strategic airlift transport airplane that was built by Antonov (ASTC) and is the worlds largest powered aircraft. ...

News story on the Spruce Goose ( info) Video of the plane's construction Problems seeing the videos? Media help.

Image File history File links Image:FilmRoll-small. ... Image File history File links Sprucegoose. ...

Specifications (Spruce Goose)

Performance specifications are projected.

A size comparison between four of the largest aircraft. Click to enlarge.

General characteristics

• Crew:
• Length: 218 ft 8 in (66.65 m)
• Wingspan: 319 ft 11 in (97.54 m)
• Height: 79 ft 4 in (24.18 m)
• Fuselage height: 30 ft (9.1 m))
• Wing area: ()
• Empty weight: ()
• Loaded weight: 400,000 lb (180,000 kg)
• Maximum gross takeoff weight: ()
• Powerplant: 8× Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major radial engines, 3,000 hp (2,240 kW) each
• Propellers: 8x four-bladed Hamilton Standard, diameter 17 ft 2 in (5.23 m) each

Performance

• Cruise speed: 220 mph (320 km/h)
• Range: 3,000 mi (4,800 km)
• Projected endurance (cruise): 20.9 h)
• Service ceiling: 20,900 ft (6,370 m)
• Climb rate: ()
• Wing loading: ()
• Power/mass: ()

Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1118x1494, 220 KB) Summary Attribution is Clem Tillier (clem AT tillier. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1118x1494, 220 KB) Summary Attribution is Clem Tillier (clem AT tillier. ... The wingspan (or just span) of an airplane is the distance from the left wingtip to the right wingtip. ... In aviation, the Maximum Take-Off Weight (or MTOW) is the maximum weight with which an aircraft can achieve flight. ... Pratt & Whitney Wasp Major (sectioned) The Pratt & Whitney R-4360 Wasp Major was a large radial piston aircraft engine designed and built during World War II. It was the last of the Wasp family and the culmination of its makers piston engine technology, but the war was over before... Radial engine of a biplane. ... Hamilton Standard, a famous aircraft propeller part supplier, was founded in 1910 by Thomas F. Hamilton. ... VC may stand for: vehicular cycling Venture capital Vice-county Victoria Cross Viet Cong Vinyl chloride Virginia Central Railway (AAR reporting mark VC) virtual circuit Visual C++ Volkov Commander (file manager) Saint Vincent and the Grenadines: ISO country code This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages... Service Ceiling—The maximum density altitude where the best rate-of climb airspeed will produce a 100 feet-per-minute climb at maximum weight while in a clean configuration with maximum continuous power. ... This page is a candidate to be moved to Wiktionary. ... In aerodynamics, wing loading is the loaded weight of the aircraft divided by the area of the wing. ... Power-to-weight ratio is a measure commonly used when comparing various vehicles (or engines), including automobiles, motorcycles and aircraft. ... The Airbus A380 is a double-decker, four-engined airliner manufactured by Airbus S.A.S. It first flew on April 27, 2005 from Toulouse, France. ... Antonov An-124-100 The Antonov An-124 Ruslan (NATO reporting name: Condor) is the largest aircraft ever mass produced, and was, until the advent of the Antonov An-225, the largest aircraft in production. ... An-225 carrying a Buran shuttle The Antonov An-225 Mriya (Антонов Ан-225 Мрія, NATO reporting name: Cossack) is a strategic airlift transport airplane that was built by Antonov (ASTC) and is the worlds largest powered aircraft. ... Singapore Airlines Boeing 747-412 The Boeing 747, commonly called the Jumbo Jet, is one of the most recognizable modern airliners and is the largest airliner currently in airline service. ... Compared to previous 747s, the 747-8 Intercontinental is stretched in two bands for a total extension of 11. ... The Lockheed C-5 Galaxy is one of the largest military aircraft in the world. ... The Boeing NLA, or New Large Aircraft, was a 1990s concept for an all-new airliner in the 500+ seat market. ... The McDonnell Douglas MD-12 was a design study undertaken by the McDonnell Douglas company in the 1990s. ...

External links

• Evergreen Aviation Museum, current home of the plane--includes history and photos

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