Trascribed from attached press release: " Howard Hughes (wearing hat) talks over details of tomorrow's initial taxi testing of his 24,000 horsepower flying boat, Nov. 1, 1947." Hughes is standing between Chal Bowen(?) (left) and Gale J. Moore (right).
Unidentified men in the interior of the 219-foot long hull of the world's largest airplane, Howard Hughes' flying boat, prior to initial water taxi tests to be conducted with Hughes at the controls, Nov. 2, 1947.
The Hughes flying boat was launched for the first time, (Nov 1, 1947) after the three concrete docks, one containing the hull and two the wing pontoons, were pumped with sea water to the outside level, gates were lowered and the plane was towed forward by tractors and then by boats as the tail cleared the dock. Los Angeles Harbor is currenly known as Long Beach Harbor, California.