Remember Howard Hughes' Spruce Goose, the largest airplane ever built.  Well, 55 years later it is still the largest airplane ever built.  Constructed for W.W.II it was not finished until after the war ended.  The only time it ever flew was when Howard Hughes lifted off for 90 seconds during what was supposed to be just a test taxi run on the water (the Spruce Goose is a boat plane).  Ever wonder what happened to this plane?   It's found a permanent home in McMinnville, Oregon of all places.   A town not even on the water.  A private aviation museum purchased the Spruce Goose some years ago and is now in the process of restoring it for display.  A new structure the size of a 747 hanger has been built to house classic plane.  The plane is scheduled to be moved into it's new home in January and will be open to the public shortly. 

The photo to the right is the Spruce Goose being restored behind the aviation museum which owns it.  It is not yet available for public viewing.  As you can see here it has not yet had its wings attached.  The person on the cherry picker to the left of the nose gives a sense of the colossal scale of this vehicle.

December  8,  2000

 
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"The Spruce Goose"