Taking off on a mission against the Japanese, a U.S.

Taking off on a mission against the Japanese, a U.S. fighter plane rolls along a matted airstrip at Cape Torokina on Bougainville in the Northern Solomons. Other fighters are shown spotted on the repair area in the background. Within three months after U.S. Marines stormed ashore on Bougainville, American troops converted a dismal jungle and swamp into a huge U.S. air force stronghold covering acres of ground. Operating from Solomon Island bases, U.S. and Allied aircraft shot down 600 Japanese planes over a period of less than four months. NI 9213