Bursts of anti-aircraft fire and a rising column of smoke illuminate the darkness in this dramatic combat photograph, believed to depict a night or low-light mission flown by the 312th Bomb Group. Night intruder and dusk/dawn strike missions exposed aircrews to the added hazards of poor visibility and disorienting enemy flak, making photographs like this rare visual records of the intensity of anti-aircraft defenses encountered over Japanese-held positions in the Pacific. Project: 218558