U.S. Marine flamethrower attacks Japanese pillbox on Saipan. Fire engulfs a Japanese pillbox as a U.S.

U.S. Marine flamethrower attacks Japanese pillbox on Saipan. Fire engulfs a Japanese pillbox as a U.S. Marine attacks the enemy fortification on Saipan Island with a flamethrower. American soldiers, who landed on the strategic Marianas base of the Central Pacific on June 14, 1944, blasted the enemy from carefully prepared defense positions and by July 7, had driven the Japanese into a trap on the northern end of the island. Saipan, less than 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) from the enemy home islands, is a vital link in Japan's inner defense system.