Combat Color Film — Pacific Fighter Aerial Combat and Strafing

Aerial Combat Caught on Film

This footage is a rare color camera film that showcases United States Army Air Forces (USAF or AAF fighters) engaging in Japanese aircraft and targets on the ground by the end of World War II in the Pacific theater. Here, we see US planes in combat attacking enemy planes and bases.

At the 0:30 mark, a Japanese plane being strafed by bullets until it eventually turned into a ball of fire. A couple more enemy planes went down. We can’t imagine the devastating effects of these guns.

Watching this footage filmed in color makes it feel that the war was only yesterday, and it also served as a reminder that this was a total war back in the day. This video might have looked even better from the ground but also scary!