[1][2] The film begins by describing the taking off points in Saipan, Guam, and Tinian, remarking how they have changed since American occupation.

General Curtis LeMay is shown planning a daylight raid on Japan's industrial areas.

Squadrons of B-29s then assemble and the audience rides with them through a space of ocean as wide as the US from Mexico to Canada, special attention being given to the island Iwo Jima, which is midway through the journey, the base for P-51 fighters that will escort the bombers.

When the bombers return to base, the hazards of war are assessed, particularly the problems associated with landing the large planes, often damaged by Japanese flak or fighters, which could sometimes be fatal.

At the very end some color footage of the mushroom cloud at Nagasaki is shown, the narrator, Reed Hadley, telling us that it saves thousands of American lives by preventing an invasion of Japan.