Sunday, October 25, 2026

Question: Howard Hughes built an enormous wooden flying boat in Southern California, the largest aircraft of its time with a wingspan longer than a football field. It lifted off only once, briefly, over Long Beach Harbor in 1947. What was this giant plane nicknamed?

Answer: The Spruce Goose. Howard Hughes’s H-4 Hercules, a massive wooden flying boat with a wingspan longer than a football field, was the largest aircraft ever built at the time. Built primarily from laminated birch, it earned the nickname “Spruce Goose.” Hughes piloted it on its first and only flight over Long Beach Harbor on November 2, 1947.