The Boeing 377 Stratocruiser was the A380 of the 1940s and 1950s. The basic design was an adaptation of the B-29 bomber in which the fuselage was enlarged for the long range transport of passengers on a double deck deck bubble design.

The major long haul airlines of the day ordered the Startocruiser including BOAC, Northwest, United and of course Pan American based in New York. This lovely all color film was produced by Pan American to promote the introduction to service for the new type in the late 1940s, and much of the footage was filmed at New York’s Idlewild Airport.