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The truly massive Hughes H-4 Hercules flying boat was conceived by reclusive millionaire entrepreneur Howard Hughes in 1942 as a means of delivering massive quantities of
men and materiel to various war zones, hence avoiding the submarine menace that presented a constant threat to merchant ships.
On 2 November 1947, the Hercules - nicknamed the 'Spruce Goose' because of its wooden construction, although the wood was mainly birch, not spruce - made a short flight of about a mile over Los Angeles roadstead in front of an excited crowd estimated at 50,000 people, rising 21m off the water and reaching a speed of 129km/h. Yet by 1947 the aircraft no longer had any strategic value, and it never flew again. Today, it is on permanent
display at the Evergreen Air Venture Museum, McMinnville, Portland, Oregon. It is still the largest aircraft in the world (only by its wingspan).
| MODEL | H-4 |
| ENGINE | 8 x Pratt & Whitney R4360-4A, 2236kW |
| DIMENSIONS |
| Wingspan | 97.5 m | 319 ft 11 in |
| Length | 66.6 m | 218 ft 6 in |
| Height | 24.1 m | 79 ft 1 in |
| Wing area | 1061.8 m2 | 11429.11 sq ft |
| PERFORMANCE |
| Max. speed | 378 km/h | 235 mph |
| Cruise speed | 225 km/h | 140 mph |
| Ceiling | 6400 m | 21000 ft |
| Range | 2535 km | 1575 miles |
 | A three-view drawing (1276 x 1268) |
| seth hughes, 04.12.2008 the builder is my grandfather | | R., D. Carreirão, rbm.helicopt(@)hotmail.com, 04.07.2008 I would like to know the airfoils profiles used in the wings of H-4 Hercules. Is it possible to know? | | Joe Breslin, jrbreslin1(@)verizon.net, 23.05.2008 Years ago I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to sit in the pilots seat and man the controls. I wish I had been with the greatest airplane designer in the world when he took this wonderful plane up for a test flight. I'm with the DVHAA at NAS/JRB Willow Grove ,PA. We have a 1915 D-8 German fighter plane on display and I have to say that anyone who fought in that war was a very brave person whether American, French or German. No oxygen, no parashute, no fire control, only guts. | | Don Williams, funandfarm(@)sbcglobal.net, 19.05.2008 Are we sure it was powered by 4360's | | James Kadas, kadas3516(@)aol.com, 08.05.2008 I am a volunteer at the Museum and we are billed as the, Evergreen Aviation and Space Museum. Our Space Museum will open on 06 June 2008. It was Henry Kaiser who came to Hughes about building the Spruce Goose. |
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Do you have any comments about this aircraft ?
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FACTS AND FIGURES© The four inner propellers had
reverse-pitch capability, allowing
the H-4 to back up and manoeuvre
easily on water. Each propeller was
5.2m in diameter. © The 'Spruce Goose' was the only
Allied aircraft designed during the
war able to carry main battle tanks. In
theory a fleet of H-4s could have
ferried armies to Europe, saving time
and avoiding the risk from
submarines. © The main structure was not spruce,
but laminated birch. Attempts to use
a resin-impregnated plywood material
called Duramold were unsuccessful.
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