The stunning black and white images were colourised by design engineer Paul Reynolds from Birmingham.
Shocking images reveal moments such as a US pilot’s Dauntless dive bomber crashing nose first into the flight deck of an aircraft carrier.
Fire erupts from beneath a Hellcat as the pilot desperately tries to escape the inferno in another photo.
One horrifying image reveals the sinking wreck of a B-29 Superfortress disappearing beneath the waves.
While another shows a shirtless crewman packing a similar plane’s belly with bombs.
All these pictures were colourised by design engineer Paul Reynolds, from Birmingham.
He said: “I think colourising detailed photos really brings them to life
“You notice detail that usually gets missed due to the monotone background.”
World War 2 was the first conflict in which aerial battles became commonplace.
Other pictures show hardy RAF crewmen pushing a bogged-down Spitfire out of the mud after landing in Italy.
While in one chilling image a US Air Force engineer is seen cleaning the “Fat Man” bomb .
It was the nuclear device dropped on Japanese city Nagasaki by the US to end World War 2.
