The Ultimate Moving Experience, Part 1

"QUANTUM SHOT" #57 Amazing Ways to Transport "Abnormal" (Oversize) Loads MOVING LOCOMOTIVES: (how they do it in EUROPE) What do you do when you need to transport a locomotive (or a vintage steam engine) over the usual highways to another city? Here is how they do it in Europe (possibly Finland): Imaging driving on a normal highway in the morning fog, and seeing this steam engine materialize right in front of you... you'd probably cross yourself and mutter a few prayers. MOVING LOCOMOTIVES: (how they do it in NORTH AMERICA) Here is how they handle the similar task in the West. This article says: "Union Pacific 4-8-4 No. 833 finally made its trip from (Pioneer Park in) Salt Lake City to (the Utah State Railroad Museum in) Ogden on Sunday, February 21, 1999, as planned, by truck. Newspaper reports variously put the cost of moving the roughly 450,000-pound locomotive and tender at $100,000 and $120,000, apparently funded by a grant from the Utah Legislature." MOVING PLANES: "SPRUCE GOOSE" FLYING BOAT, 1947 When it comes to moving "the Biggest Float Plane in the world" and the one with the "Largest Wing-span", it certainly will provide some stunning visuals. These are some shots from 1947 showing how it was done. (you can watch the move in detail in "The Aviator" movie) But first, a few facts about the plane: The Spruce Goose, officially known as the Hughes H-4 Hercules, was the brainchild of flamboyant billionaire Howard Hughes. The aircraft had originally been ordered by the US government during World War II as a giant cargo plane for the armed troops and tanks. Howard Hughes's creation was the world's largest plane at the time and is still the largest flying boat ever built. It also holds records for the largest wingspan at 97.5 meters, tallest airplane at 24.2 meters, and the largest aircraft ever made from wood. Here is how they transported it to the harbor for its first (and only) flight: basking in the sun before the first flight: HOW THEY TRANSPORT FIGHTER JETS IN RUSSIA: Spied on a normal Russian city street. Hope all went well, and they did not have any accidents along the way, like this one: Here is a better set-up: CONTINUE TO PART 2 - HERE Permanent Link...