U.S. turns offensive in the Pacific theater and captures Tarawa from Japan during the World War II. The U.S. invasion fleet moves toward Tarawa. Sailors on the ship discuss the strategy. A globe showing the Pacific Ocean. Marines on the fleet ships pray. The U.S. Navy opens fire. Explosions on the surface of water. Marines land and fight after a naval bombardment. More reinforcements arrive. Destroyed Japanese emplacements due to the American offensive. Wrecked Japanese weapons on the island. Korean laborers. American construction battalions repair the damaged airfield.
U.S. captures Tarawa from Japan during World War II. Fighting in Tarawa. Explosions as the enemy positions are shelled. The U.S. Marines move forward. The wounded are placed on stretcher and the Marines waddle through the water and carry the wounded to the landing craft. A Marine takes off his battered helmet. The Marines move forward and on the way take prisoners. Dead Japanese soldiers. A Marine feeds a lone kitten which has survived. The U.S. Army Units relive the Marines. A colonel with his soldiers. U.S. soldiers salute as the American flag is hoisted. A soldier blows into a trumpet.
Convoy of Japanese supply ships in the Southwest Pacific during World War 2. Mysteriously, two explode. One sinks and one is left burning. Narrator describes similar losses of Japanese cargo vessels and Japanese reports attributing the losses to new superior American aircraft. View of Japanese Military High Command buildings in Tokyo, Japan. An Imperial Japanese Navy Night Fighter (QHAFMFA6) seen taking off. Japanese admiral boards warship to plan Imperial Navy strategy and tactics. Attacking aircraft is shown as a U.S. Navy PBY Catalina Flying Boat. Several views of Catalina flying boats in flight, painted black for night flying (called "Black Cats"). Aerial view of islands with small harbors where a PBY can hide during daylight. Base personnel gather at a catalina base awaiting an overdue returning PBY. She appears and buzzes base to announce successful mission. The PBY then lands in nearby harbor, taxis toward shore and is met by sailors in boats who attach a tow line to winch the PBY ashore, tail first. Squadron Commander meets the plane as the crew disembarks. Commodore Thomas S. Combs, Commander Aircraft 7th Fleet, arrives by jeep with Group Commander, Captain Peck. Crew gives quick accounting of mission. Corpsmen take wounded combat cameraman from the PBY on a stretcher. Tow pulls the PBY to area of ramp for servicing and repairs. Maintenance personnel note crew report of problems and begin corrective actions. They count 8 bullet holes in starboard wing.They find hole in fuselage from shrapnel that wounded the cameraman, and repair it. They repair a gas tank leak and refuel the PBY. View of 525lb and 1000lb bombs in Squadron dump. Armorers assemble belts of 50cal machine gun ammunition.They rearm the PBY with bombs under one wing and a torpedo under the other, and machine gun ammunition. They remove two black cats (animals) from inside the airplane. PBY crew plays water polo with a coconut. View of officer's quarters. Pilots prepare for next mission and go to intelligence briefing
'In the Solomons ' United States ships underway in the Pacific and soldiers on the deck of a ship. A man looks through binoculars towards the sea. Admiral William Halsey and others look at a map and discuss the strategy. An animated map of Solomon Islands shows Japanese establishments. Guns on board the American ships fire at Japan's positions at night. Soldiers loaded in landing crafts move away from the ship. Soldiers wade through water and land at the Rendova Island. They march inland on the island. Soldiers engage in a fierce battle with Japanese as they fire guns. Planes drop bombs over the island. Survivors of a ship sunk brought on board another ship. Survivors sleep and relax.
German troops land in Japan during World War II. German cruiser Thor in the Pacific Ocean. Sailors on rail. The sailors stand at attention. Seaplanes are catapulted from the ship. A seaplane taxis on water. An Allied freighter underway in the Pacific Ocean. The cruiser captures the freighter and later docks in a Japanese port. Japanese naval officers come aboard. German and Japanese flags. German crew visits military graves near Mount Fuji.
At start, the film shows the Captain of the M.S. Gripsholm relaxing, with an American civilian official, along with several crew members and some American women, in the First Class smoking lounge aboard the ship. Scene shifts to view of the Gripsolm's two smoke stacks and then to a stack of baggage belonging to Japanese Nationals and Issei passengers aboard the ship for repatriation to Japan in World War 2. Customs officials are seen screening the luggage. Stern view of the Gripsholm docked at pier in Jersey City, New Jersey. Swedish flag displayed on the deck. More stern views of the ship.