Lieutenant Edward O'Hare, the U.S. Navy's first ace fighter pilot of World War 2, is seen flying his F4F aircraft (number: F-13). Felix-the-Cat logo of the Navy Fighting Squadron Three (VF-3) is seen on his airplane, but only 4 Japanese victory flags are visible below his cockpit. Another F4F (number F-1) appears,flown by Lieutenant Commander John S. Thach, Commander of VF-3. Thach is flying with his canopy open. The VF-3 logo and 3 Japanese victory flags are painted on his airplane. With Thach in the lead, O'Hare maneuvers into the left wing position.
A film on the importance of photographic reconnaissance. A pilot reading a book. A clock on a wall. An announcement on a loudspeaker. A Grumman F9F Panther aircraft lands on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean. Men standing along the sides of the aircraft carrier. A man directs the landing of the aircraft. A pilot gets off the aircraft and talks to the previous pilot. Officers and pilots in a briefing room. A pilot locates places on a wall map. The officers talk to the first pilot. An officer says that he is needed for photo reconnaissance, not as a fighter pilot. He checks cameras and boards an airplane. The pilot seated in the cockpit of the aircraft. A U.S. Navy Sikorsky Ho3S-1 Helicopter hovering in the background. A man signals to take off. The airplane takes off from the flight deck of the aircraft carrier. Aerial views of F9F Panther aircraft in formation in flight over the ocean. A ship underway. The aircraft flies over a target area in Korea. The pilot marks the target area on a map. Soldiers aboard a tank on a field. The F9F Panther aircraft in flight overhead. Huts in the area. The pilot takes photographs of the area. The enemy aims anti aircraft guns at the aircraft. They fire at airplanes. Flak bursts in the sky.
View of Angaur island at sunrise at start of Battle of Angaur in World War II. Aerial view of aircraft carrier. Conning tower on USS Essex. Crew member speaking on on radio headset. Pilot in cockpit of Grumman F6F Hellcat. Fighter planes gathered on deck of the USS Essex (CV-9) near the Palau Islands. Grumman F6F fighters on board start after signal from crew in conning tower. Fighters take off from flight deck. Another Grumman F6F fighter is raised to deck using aircraft lift and takes off. Fighters in formation in the air. Battleship USS Tennessee (BB-43) and four cruisers bombard Japanese positions in Angaur. Explosion on top of a hill. Trees destroyed on the coast as seen from a United States Navy ship. Naval artillery firing at Angaur. Landing craft being deployed from ships to land on Angaur.
Captain Benjamin R Battle climbs into cockpit of Chinese Nationalist F-104B plane during transfer of F-104 planes to Chinese Nationalist Air Force at Kuang Kuan Air Base in Taiwan. Assistant on aircraft ladder. Chinese Nationalist F-104B with ladder up to cockpit and flexible hose running from ground service equipment to aircraft. Chinese Nationalist ground crewmen. Chinese Nationalist civilian with large coolie hat at the wheel of a tug. Chinese Nationlist insignia on F-104B engine. Chinese Nationalist F-104B taxies to left on runway.
Captain Wang and Captain Battle board Chinese Nationalist F-104B during transfer of F-104 planes to Chinese Nationalist Air Force at Kuang Kuan Air Base in Taiwan. Helmet on windscreen of aircraft and clouds in the background. Chinese Nationalist F-104B ground crewmen climbs down aircraft ladders and removes them from aircraft. C-47 plane parked in the right background. Chinese Nationalist F-104B taxies left on runway. Left wing and nose of C-47 plane. Tail and main fuselage of Chinese Nationalist F-104B aircraft, flying by to left.
Film opens showing a U.S. Air Force F-100 in flight. Its SE tail code identifies it as belonging to the 416th Tactical Fighter Squadron, 31st Tactical Fighter Wing, out of Tuy Hoa, Vietnam. This is a two-seater F-100F training aircraft employed as a fast Forward Air Controller (FAC) in Operation Commando Sabre. Its back seat is empty. Various views of the aircraft are shown, some with brilliant blue sky background. Background radio transmissions sound like a Navy or Marine GCA unit giving approach guidance to an aircraft. Beginning at TC: 01:50, an F-4E of the 366th Fighter Wing is seen, flying on the wing of the F-100. The flight of two continues in formation to the end of the film.