In 1942, at the height of World War II, Allied ships crossing the Atlantic were routinely attacked and sunk by German U-boats, interrupting shipments of supplies and troops to Europe.
The Allies needed a way to reliably and safely transport large payloads across the ocean. American industrialist Henry Kaiser lit upon the idea of a creating a cargo plane of unprecedented size, and turned to eccentric billionaire and aviator Howard Hughes to build it.
The plane would need to carry 150,000 pounds, 750 troops or two 30-ton Sherman tanks.
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