Daniel Lukens has two great loves: combat flying for the Army Air Corps and Libby Conners, a female pilot he met while stationed in Hawaii. Libby is a flight instructor, and their budding romance is put to the test when Dan is transferred to the Philippines.

Mere months after their parting, Pearl Harbor is bombed by the Japanese. Eight hours later, Clark Field on the Philippines is also bombed, propelling the Americans into the war and forcing the U.S. military forces on the island to fight with limited food, weapons, and supplies. Dan and the other soldiers bravely fight, only to find themselves prisoners of the Japanese.