 Its last passenger aircraft, the Boeing 377 Stratocruiser, had netted the company a $15 million loss before it was purchased by the Air Force as the KC-97 Stratofreighter.In a demonstration flight over Lake Washington outside Seattle, on August 7, 1955, test pilot Tex Johnston performed a barrel roll in the 367-80 prototype.Although he justified his unauthorized action to Bill Allen, the president of Boeing, as selling the airplane with a 1 'g' manoeuvre he was told not to do it again.