"The Hughes H-4 Hercules flying boat, also known as the “Spruce Goose,” was designed and built by the Hughes Aircraft Company as an ultra-large, transoceanic military transport for use during World War II. The massive flying boat remains the largest all-wood airplane built. It was intended to transport as many as 750 troops to the European or Pacific theaters and avoid the submarines that were sinking hundreds of transport ships during the war. Despite the "spruce" nicknaming, it was actually constructed primarily of birch due to weight concerns and restrictions on the use of aluminum during the war. Numerous delays prevented it from being completed before the end of the war. Its first and only flight, which lasted only one minute and achieved an altitude of seventy feet, was conducted on November 2, 1947, off the coast of San Pedro, California, with Howard Hughes at the controls, David Grant as copilot, and numerous engineers, flight crew, and representatives from the press on board. If you live in or visit Oregon, be sure to visit the Evergreen Museum to see it in person!" This was posted to
our Instagram account on May 05, 2021 –
https://millsfield.sfomuseum.org/instagram/1763559165/