The destroyer USS Braine, DD-630, transfers wounded men, via Stokes stretcher, to the battleship USS New Mexico, BB-40, for medical treatment, during the Marianas campaign of World War 2. (The USS Braine had earlier been hit by a Japanese six-inch shore battery off the shores of Tinian, causing minor damage.)
Three U.S. Light Cruisers moving in a line off the coast of an island in the Marianas during World War 2. Two Bogue class escort aircraft carriers (CVE). A warship in camouflage paint. Sailors sunbathing on deck of battleship as Kingfisher scout plane catapults next to them. The Kingfisher flying low over the water. Flak filled sky. A United States Navy Fletcher-class destroyer warship (DD) in camouflage, passes. Heavy smoke billowing from land targets. Light Cruiser firing at shore. Sailors loading and firing gun aboard ship. Firing from triple gun turret aboard battleship. Smoke rising from heavy bombardment on shore.
Animated map shows Saipan, Marian Islands. Animation shows U.S. forces acquiring the island from the Japanese during World War II. Aircraft Task Force 58, 52 and 53 approach Tinian and Saipan islands. Aircraft destroy anti aircraft guns, sugarcane fields, coastal areas, buildings and communication centers on the islands.
Animated map shows Saipan in the Marian Islands. Animation shows U.S. forces acquiring the island from the Japanese during World War II. Pictures of U.S. ships approaching the island. A fleet of United States aircraft bombard Japanese islands.
Map of Pacific Ocean showing Saipan and routes of B-29s to bomb Japan. Aerial view of B-29 in flight over water. Four fighter escort aircraft. B-29 comes in for landing. Numerous B-29s, carrying "Square" tail markings, land at the airfield. Map shows range of the B-29s extending to Japan and beyond, to edge of China.
Arming B-29s on Saipan during World War Two. B-29 on ramp with all four engines running. It taxis for takeoff. General activity on ramp as ground crews load bombs into B-29s. Bombs being moved on dollies. Airmen write messages in chalk on bombs. One reads: "Only the Beginning." Another reads: "KO Tokyo / Pappy." Bombs being loaded into B-29 bomb bays. Mechanic cleans guns in the top turret of a B-29 aircraft.