Members of the Seventh Air Force adjust battle gear on the Rose's Beau in the Gilbert Islands.

The campaign in the Gilbert Islands—a series of 16 coral islands and atolls in the South Pacific—was part of the same siege series as the nearby Marshall Islands, which included an American force of 35,000 troops. It also included 6,000 vehicles, among them fighting planes like Rose's Beau. The Japanese had occupied the Gilbert Islands three days after Pearl Harbor. American troops went in on November 20, 1943. By the 23rd, they had overtaken the island chain.

Painting familiar or fierce images on a war plane's nose was popular in both world wars, and on both the Allied and Axis sides. The sketches of torpedoes lined up near the cockpit window represent bombs dropped on enemy targets.

Picture Archive: American Soldiers, 1860s to 1940s

As Americans celebrate Memorial Day, we look back at soldiers in action.