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17 февраля 2020 г., 19:17
Slowly gathering speed in the face of a blustery wind, the Hercules sliced through the water, then dramatically lifted off. Cruising at seventy feet above the water, the big ship flew for about a mile before Hughes set it down, gently and without incident. The unexpected liftoff caught everyone ashore by surprise. A gasp and then a cheer went up from the thousands lining the harbor. Small pleasure boats, gathered to watch the tests, tooted their horns. In the cockpit, Hughes was like a “little kid,” recalled Joe Petrali, one of his crewmen. “He was grinning, and talking a lot, almost jumping up and down in his elation.”
