Howard Hughes, who was a film director and an aviator, was born on the twenty-fourth of December in the year 1905. He was born in Texas. Hughes has had a great contribution to the field of aviation. He was an aviator that was genuinely accomplished. His impact was significant in the field. He had a great interest in aviation to a point where he directed a film that greatly helped in showing his flying passion (Biography.com, 2016). Hughes also had a significant impact in aviation since he was very innovative. In the year 1932, he formed an aircraft that was referred to as Hughes Aircraft. The aircraft helped a lot in producing some inventions in the technology of aerospace. He greatly helped in advancing the aviation science. Hughes was also a pilot that was record-setting. In 1938, he flew all over the world in about ninety-one hours. He also built the largest airplane that has ever been made. However, the airplane only managed to fly once in the year 1947.
Hughes designed an aircraft that was critical technologically. It was the Hughes H-1 Racer (Allen, 2016). He flew the H-1 Racer in the year 1935 where he set a 352 mph airspeed record. In the year 1937, he flew an H-1 Racer that had been re-designed where he set a new airspeed record by flying to New York from Los Angeles non-stop in seven hours, twenty-eight minutes, and twenty-five seconds. During the flight, he had an average speed of 322 mph. The racer had a landing gear that was retraceable. All the joints and rivets could set flash in the plane’s body with the aim of reducing drag. Therefore, that helps in showing that Hughes was determined to making the best out of what he did. That is because he worked very hard to try and make flying better. With all the flights that Hughes had, he was trying to show that technology is a triumph in the aviation field (C., 1988). He also tried to illustrate that air travels that are long-distant and safe are very possible. Being a great aviator, Hughes managed to receive many awards. Having an aircraft company greatly helped the aviation field since Hughes managed to produce aircraft that was more advanced.
Hughes had a great background that contributed to the great contribution that he had in the aviation field. He was born to a family that was very wealthy. His father was an oil drill manufacturer that was very successful. At the age of eighteen, he inherited the business of his family since his father had died. Some of the funds that he inherited were used in financing the films that he directed and produced as well. He developed a flying passion, and that is why he created an aircraft company. He enjoyed designing and building planes. Many are the times when he risked his life while trying to test the planes that he had designed (Check Hayden, 2008). Being wealthy made it easy for Hughes to achieve his passion without any difficulties. That is because he had all the resources that were required in advancing the aviation field. He was among the people that were very rich all over the world. He was looking for new ways through which he could invest his money. He had a lifelong dream which was to fund basic researches in science.
His research in science also helped a lot in the scientific advancement that he made in the aviation field. He could fly his plane on a daily basis and that greatly motivated him to pursue his passion for aviation. He invested a lot of his time trying to design planes that helped in showing how technology had shaped aviation. He loved speed while in the air, and that is the reason he kept on making constant world records every time he flew. He managed to fly all the planes that he had helped in designing (“Howard Hughes – New World Encyclopedia”, 2016). That, therefore, helps in showing that he had a lot of experience and knowledge regarding the planes. That is the reason he significantly helped in developing the aviation field since he used the knowledge and experience that he had acquired. At a young age, he showed interest in technology and science. He had an engineering aptitude that was very great. He was a student that had a great liking in flying and mathematics as well. At the age of fourteen, he started undertaking his first lessons in engineering. He also took aeronautical engineering and math courses. That, therefore, helps in showing that Hughes had a great foundation in flying and aviation as well. That is the reason he was very good at what he did, and he ensured that he managed to pursue his dreams (“Hughes Aircraft Company, 1986). He was very determined to achieve his dreams and that greatly motivated him to go for it. He was also very committee, and that is the reason he managed to help greatly in advancing the aviation field. That is because he encouraged technology, and he also managed to advance the aviation science.
There are some challenges that were a barrier to the success of Hughes. One of them is the crashes that he experienced. Injuries from a crash caused him Obsessive Compulsive Behavior. Obsessive Compulsive Behavior is a behavior and brain disorder. It causes a lot of anxiety to those that are affected. It involves compulsions and obsessions, and they use a lot of time. Therefore, they affect significant activities in the values of an individual. In often cases, Hughes could exhibit the compulsive behavior. For example, he could use tissue paper sheets on telephones and door knobs as a way of preventing himself from getting contaminated.
It is, therefore, evident that the disorder greatly affected the success of Hughes. That is because many are the times when he could focus on activities that were of less importance. Therefore, he did not have enough time to focus on the important activities in his life and that greatly affected his success. His behavior also started changing, and that could make it very difficult for him to work with other people without problems. That also contributed in challenging his success. The disorder caused him to fear greatly contamination. Therefore, he insisted that he wanted to live in a zone that was free of any germs. Therefore, he started becoming very reclusive, and he could no longer live a normal life. In the year 1946, he experienced a catastrophe when his plane had engine trouble, and it ended up crashing into a house. He badly burned from the crash. He also had many fractures, and he had a disfigured face. He survived the crash, but he had to take painkillers since he was always in pain. Therefore, he started having a dependence on the transcription drugs. Therefore, there is no way that he could focus in a situation where he was not using the drugs. That, therefore, greatly affected him and it also affected his activities.
Competition is also one of the challenges that he faced. In the late 1950 years, his TWA airline started losing out to the competitors. Jet aircraft was being used by the competitors. Therefore, he had to ensure that the Hughes aircraft was bringing him a lot of success. Hughes was also diagnosed to have neurosyphilis. It is a venereal disease that usually affects a person’s brain. The symptoms of the disease are carelessness regarding one’s grooming and hygiene, delusions, and irritability. It is a disease that greatly contributed in plaguing his later life. That is because his life completely changed. He could easily get irritated regarding small issues. It also became hard for him to get along with other people. Therefore, his success was greatly challenged since it was very difficult for him to focus properly on his work. He could also not manage to be committed to his work in aviation like he used to.
The activities of Hughes have had an impact that is seen up to this day in the aviation field. One of the impacts is that Hughes greatly encouraged in the use of technology. That is because he helped in showing that technology is very important for the field to be a success. Therefore, the field of aviation has greatly utilized technology. The advancement of technology has also greatly helped in ensuring that aviation has greatly improved. It has also helped a lot in making advancements in the field. Hughes was also a determined person who could go for anything that he wanted, and he did not give up until he managed to achieve whatever he wanted. Therefore, that has made it easy for those that are in the aviation field to work hard and be determined to ensure that they can achieve all that they want. It has also encouraged them to work hard. Hughes was also an innovative person. That is because he invented some aircraft and the aircraft contributed to his success. That has greatly contributed in motivating those that are in the aviation field to be innovative. That is the reason companies are always trying to produce aircraft that is more advanced now and then. One of his innovations, which is H-1 racer was a great breakthrough in the aviation field. That is because it had a gear that was retraceable. Therefore, many aircraft that has been designed later had a gear that was retraceable. The gear was very important since it helped in reducing the drag of the aircraft. Hughes was also a risk taker. That is because it is through the taking of risks that he managed to gain his success (“Industry. Hughes aircraft acquires EMI has”, 1975).
Despite the crashes that he experienced, he did not give up. That is because he believed in himself and he also wanted to achieve the best. Hughes was also an inspiration to a lot of people. That is because he was very wealthy and successful as well. Despite the fact that he had inherited a lot of wealth from his father, he still worked very hard, and he ended up making more wealth. Therefore, many of the people that are in the aviation field still have Hughes as their role model, and they try their best to follow his footsteps. The world that is lived today is all about technology. It is, therefore, evident that Hughes significantly contributed in making way for the science advancement in aviation. That is because science and technology are the main factors that keep the aviation field running. His love for technology helped a lot in his innovations (Sherman, 2007). Therefore, the aviation field has had a lot of innovations, and it is through the innovations that the field has managed to develop greatly and succeed as well. The innovations have also helped a lot in utilizing technology.
In conclusion, it is evident that Howard Hughes is a person who was very successful in life, and he also had a great contribution in the field of aviation. Hughes was born to a family that was very wealthy, and that means that he did not have difficulties growing up. At a young age, he was very interested in flying, and that is when he started taking his lessons in flying. He later became a great pilot, and he was also involved in building and also designing airplanes. He received some awards due to the world records that he had broken. He made a great contribution in the Aviation field, and he ensured that he managed to achieve his dreams in the field.
- Biography.com. (2016).
- Allen, S. (2016). Howard Hughes: Aviator, Innovator, Billionaire. About.com Money.
- C., B. (1988). Howard Hughes Establishes Unit at MIT. Science, 1090-1090.
- Check Hayden, E. (2008). The future for Howard Hughes. Nature, 455(7214), 718-718.
- Howard Hughes – New World Encyclopedia. (2016). Newworldencyclopedia.org.
- Hughes aircraft company. (1986). Space Policy, 2(4), 279-280.
- Hughes aircraft nominates payload specialists for shuttle flights. (1984). COSPAR Information Bulletin, 1984(101), 74.
- Industry. Hughes aircraft acquires emihus. (1975). Electronics And Power, 21(5), 297.
- Sherman, S. (2007). Howard Hughes – Aviator, Movie Maker, Tycoon, Reclusive Billionaire. Acepilots.com.