Tragically this beautiful aircraft, and its unique P&W R-1535 engine, was destroyed and builder /pilot Jim Wright killed when it crashed in Yellowstone National Park, WY., on 4th August of the following year whilst returning to its Oregon base after attending Oshkosh AirVenture 2003.

On display in the Golden Age of Flight Hall at NASM, Washington, D.C. On Sept. 13, 1935, Howard Hughes set a new world speed record by flying the H-1 at 567 km/h. On Jan. 19, 1937 he broke the transcontinental US speed record with an incredible avg. speed of 535 km/h. Hughes used low aspect ratio wings and moderate aspect ratio wings respectively for each record. Outstanding design features included the close fitting bell-shaped engine cowling, retractable landing gear and flush rivets to reduce drag.

Crashed with the death of the pilot/owner James Wright on August 4, 2003 in Wyoming. The probable cause of the accident was the in-flight loss of a propeller counterweight, followed by the pilots loss of aircraft control during a forced landing attempt and subsequent inadvertent stall/spin to the ground.

Flown - and crash-landed - by Howard Hughes himself, his H-1 took the world speed record for landplanes to 567 km/h (352 mph) on 13 September 1935. Oddly the Macchi MC.72 floatplane was very much faster at 709 km/h (441 mph). Photo by: John Underwood / Glendale Public Library