One hit wonders

Although the Hughes HK-1, dubbed the “Spruce Goose” by mainstream media, was designed to haul massive amounts of equipment and personnel, only a handful of people have ever been inside of it when it was in motion. Most of them were crew members.

Three of the crew who were part of the airplane’s one and only flight took part in a reunion recently at the Evergreen Aviation Museum in McMinnville, Ore. After the maiden voyage and up until the time of Hughes’ death, the HK-1 was kept one phone call away from being ready for flight in Long Beach, Calif. There were men who spent their entire careers caring for an aircraft that never lifted off again.