Howard Hughes inspecting the equipment on the flight deck inside of the HK-1, Hughes Flying Boat, which he designed and built. The man pictured behind Hughes is possibly Earl Martyn, Hughes' flight engineer. The Flying Boat was near completion and was located on Terminal Island in the Los Angeles Harbor.
Description given with photo: "Howard Hughes Carries His Lunch Tray Cafeteria Style - Washington, D.C. Howard Hughes is shown selecting his luncheon cafeteria style during a short recess of the Senate investigation of his wartime plane contracts. Along with Thomas A. Slack, his counsel, the millionaire plane builder had his luncheon in the cafeteria of the Senate office building, while Senator Homer Ferguson, (R) Michigan the Sub-Committee Chairman, called the recess due to the absence of the witnesses summoned to the inquiry at Hughes' request. 11/8/47."
Howard Hughes sitting inside the Lockheed 14 aircraft in New York. Typed on a piece of paper attached to the image: "Hughes' Paris hop delayed by motor trouble. New York City-- Howard Hughes, millionaire oil man and speed flyer, in the cabin of his huge Lockheed plane as he waited impatiently for a crew of mechanics to repair one of the motors so that he could take off for Paris. He was forced to give up his plans to leave on July 9th when mechanics found that it would be impossible to change the 18 cylinders of his motors in time. Crews worked all night at the job. Rough spots were found in the cylinders during fuel consumption tests. Credit Line (ACME) 7/10/38 Burs SF."
Transcribed from attached press release: "HUGHES TEST-PILOTS SECOND XF-11. CULVER CITY, Calif., April 5. Preparatory to making its first flight test today, Howard Hughes, famed flier-industrialist, is shown in the cockpit of the second XF-11 sister ship to the plane in which he almost lost his life in an accident last July 7. Hughes designed and built the ship, one of the world's fastest long-range reconnaissance planes for the Army Air forces in conjunction with the Air Materiel Command engineers."