Ferrydude: I just flew a trip with a guy who years ago rode around on the jumpseats with many airlines. The USAF required inspectors to ride on various passenger and cargo planes, in order to be approved to carry Air Force personnel and cargo. He also attended ground schools.
He told me that Arrow Air lost the contract after the disaster in Gander. The Canadian Safety Board was split on the primary cause of that accident, which was filled with soldiers.
He also visited the c0ckp1t of the Spruce Goose in McMinnville, Oregon. Said that the plane had a gigantic hydraulic pump, as big as a small car! When it suddenly flew from the harbor at Long Beach, it actually had no hydraulic pressure for the flight controls! Hughes was apparently determined to lift off, but I don't know if he was aware of the hydraulic failure. He had been told that the plane could never fly and was very tempted to prove the critics wrong. There were panels around his left seat with many controls and gauges.
Could the Goose have cruised on just four engines?
Years ago Buffalo Airways lost a 707 while attempting a three-engine takeoff in Kansas City. There seems to have been little or no such required training for the crew, regarding when to advance the asymmetric throttle lever. Many small US companies expect their employees to 'improvise', otherwise many of them never could have stayed in business.