In 1940, the country drew ever closer to war. Alex already watched Germany invade his parents' home country the year prior and tensions continued to rise. After Pearl Harbor and the US's official entry into the conflict, his older brother Anthony was drafted into the Army Air Corps in 1942. Despite still trying to finish his senior year of high school, it wasn't long until his own name came up and Alex was drafted into the Army. Initially, he was assigned to Company A of the 296th Engineer Combat Battalion at Camp Shelby, Mississippi. Arriving in the pouring rain, the unit began by clearing out trees in the surrounding area and began basic training. They also began learning how to do their main task: building bridges. Alex and his fellow engineers practiced various methods they would eventually use to build valuable bridges that allowed US troops to continue moving forward in Europe. 

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     In October 1943 the unit shipped overseas on the SS Santa Elena, described as a ship "designed to carry 2,000 people...[which] made it just right for our group of 4,000 big, brawny soldiers." After the long trip Alex and the engineers arrived in Liverpool and, after a few different stations, eventually set up shop with the 1128th Engineer Combat Group in Highnam Court, Gloucester. It was here where Kapitanski received his unique role within the unit. While doing maneuvers in March 1944, he saw a black widow in the grass which then bit his left wrist. Almost immediately, his whole arm swelled up, he began to feel dizzy, and he was rushed to a hospital. Alex was there for five days when his whole arm and shoulder began to swell up in the reaction with immense pain. He was given medication to take for the next five months and was eventually sent back to the 296th by the end of the month. However, he described that ever since the bite, his left hand and arm randomly went numb at various times of the day which continued for the rest of his life. With his condition hindering his ability as an engineer in the unit and faced with a possible medical discharge, he instead put in a transfer to become the official battalion photographer and moved to H&S Company. With this task, his goal would be to follow different elements of the unit throughout their journey and take photos for a book that would be made about them after the war.

     A month later, the 296th Engineers began their preparations to move to mainland Europe for the upcoming invasion. They began by waterproofing their vehicles and equipment, and continued rigorous training. On June 28th, D-Day+22, the battalion finally set foot on French soil. Kapitanski, camera in hand, immediately began taking photos of the unit and it's various assignments. One of the first was the upkeep of one of the main supply routes from Utah Beach, followed by removing minefields, making POW enclosures, repairing roads, and other various tasks near Vierville, France. In the middle of July, Kapitanski got his first experience in combat. While attached to the 1120th Engineer Combat Group to support the 9th ID, the 296th found themselves sheltering in foxholes when German 88mm guns opened up on their position.

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     During the battalions "baptism of fire" in Normandy, higher-ups realized a secondary, yet vital role that Kapitanski could fill as a lone photographer on the ground: reconnaissance. By July 1944, Allied advances in France slowed and needed a way to break through German defensive lines. As a result, "Operation Cobra" commenced when the 8th AF began a massive bombardment on July 24th which ground troops could then use to start an offensive towards Marigny and Canisy. Kapitanski was sent alone with his camera and rifle to scout behind enemy lines during the bombardment. Cautiously avoiding enemy eyesight while also trying to survive the exploding shells falling around him, Kapitanski carefully maneuvered to take photos of the results and aftermath then made his way back to American lines, where the photos were developed and used for intelligence for the counterattack. Despite this, the troops fought through unexpectedly tough German resistance that slowed their push, and decided to try again on the 26th.​​

     Once again on July 26th, Kapitanski cautiously made his way behind German lines without being seen. He quietly found an abandoned German foxhole in the corner of a hedgerow on the edge of a Fallschirmjäger position, which he promptly slipped into. Once he heard the planes flying overhead, he braced himself for the bombardment. Suddenly, he found himself surrounded by explosions, with bombs going off as close as 75 feet away from his foxhole–a distance shorter than most modern basketball courts. The surrounding Germans immediately began scouring for cover, looking for any foxhole they could find. Through the explosions surrounding him, Alex noticed a young Fallschirmjäger crawling along the hedgerow next to him. He watched as the German paratrooper desperately jumped into a nearby foxhole. Seizing the opportunity, Kapitanski attached his bayonet to his rifle, gathered his courage, and began to charge towards him. Without firing a shot, he jumped into the foxhole and ordered the German to surrender, to which he immediately threw his hands in the air. Keeping his rifle pointed at him, Alex grabbed his camera and pointed in the direction he came from. The young German, a sniper who was only 16-years-old, placed his hands on his head and began to walk as Kapitanski single-handedly led him back to US lines. While walking him down a road just south of Les Champs de Losque, a British war correspondent noticed them coming his way and snapped a pictured of the two of them. The photo was printed in newspapers in his hometown, across the US and England, and in the Stars and Stripes newspaper. These actions eventually earned Kapitanski a Silver Star for his bravery as a photographer, alone behind enemy lines.

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     Throughout the Allied breakthrough in Normandy and further into Northern France, Kapitanski continued to have more brushes with death. While on another reconnaissance mission during a bombardment, fragmentation launched towards him and made some deep cuts across his forehead. Although he never reported it and never received a Purple Heart, the story was a favorite of his to tell after the war as he pointed to the scars they left. In another instance, he got lost in some hedgerows while trying to make his way to take pictures of C Company from the 296th working on a nearby road. Immediately, he realized he accidentally made his way into German lines when an MG 42 opened fire towards him. Grabbing his rifle from his shoulder, Alex frantically took cover. He looked around for a place to escape and noticed one German trying to flank him around the back and cut off the direction he came from. Carefully aiming under the rain of machine gun fire, he fired through the hedgerow at the flanking German-hitting him and taking him out. Kapitanski then worked his way through whatever cover he could find during breaks in the German fire until he made it back to friendly territory.

     Over the next few months, Kapitanski followed the 296th as they advanced further into France. They went through Mortain, where they assisted in the removal and disposal of an unexploded 2600-pound bomb near the center of the town. Alex also photographed the unit building vital bridges across the countryside, allowing Allied troops to cross rivers and keep the push moving. Driving briefly through the outskirts of Paris in September, the battalion soon made their way into Belgium. Their first major task in the new country was building a 181-foot bridge across the Semois River in Bouillon, which they completed in less than a week. The battalion also worked on major bridges in Sedan, Straimont, and Florenville, all finished before the end of September. The men of the 296th mentioned how incredibly grateful people along the French and Belgian border were to see Americans, with many of the troops being invited into houses and given parties or performances from the locals.

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     The weather soon turned cold and conditions worsened, making the construction work of the engineers exponentially harder. Kapitanski continued to follow the battalion as they built bridges in Belgium, but in December their sights were set on destruction. As the Germans began their counterattack during the Battle of the Bulge, engineers of the 296th began blowing up bridges and building roadblocks near Eupen and Elsenborn to slow the German advance. On January 9th, 1945 Alex went to investigate a report in which two Germans dressed in American uniforms threw a vial of acid onto an officer of the battalion. The tactic of dressing up as Americans was employed by the Germans throughout the winter in an attempt to stir confusion among American units, but by the time Kapitanski arrived they had escaped. Throughout the bitter fighting in the winter of 1944-45, engineers of the 296th worked 24 hours a day on maintaining roads for the Allies.

     In February 1945 the battalion finally set foot in Germany, moving into Roetgen. Here the effect of the war on the German people set in. After the failed German offensive, it was only a matter of time before the fall of Germany, which still continued to fight tooth and nail. The 296th noted that, as they entered their enemy's homeland, "every house showed the marks of war, and most were roofless." Their job, naturally, was to repair the roofs and make buildings that could be used for evacuation hospitals. Kapitanski photographed the endeavor, as well as the battalion's multiple bridges across the Roer River near Birkesdorf. By the end of March, Alex and the engineers finally crossed the Rhine, and continued on various projects around Hachenburg, Dollendorf, and Alsdorf. At this point in the war, the unit built so many bridges that any given company could finish an 80-foot Bailey Bridge in a matter of hours. 

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​     The unit continued to work around the clock in Germany, Kapitanski taking photos along the way. In late April, B Company constructed the largest Pile and Trestle bridge of any engineer battalion in Europe-boasting 185 feet. Built in Mellingen, the bridge was dedicated to two men in the unit who tragically swerved off the previous bridge in the same spot. The unit celebrated the completion of the bridge on May 8th, the same day of the official German surrender. The battalion moved into Berlin in July, and various construction projects continued in occupation-some even requiring the employment of German civilians. With the war over, Alex and the men finally got some free time, allowing them to go to movies, see some of Bob Hope's shows, play baseball, and go sightseeing in the city. Kapitanski was sent home in late 1945, officially discharged on November 25th.

     Upon returning to the States, the first thing Alex did was finish his last year of high school. At his old school, he returned a decorated war hero and became quite popular around the halls. He took on the role of class photographer, joined the football team, and described his ambition to visit the battlefields he fought on a year prior in his yearbook profile. The yearbook also featured the famous photo of Kapitanski escorting the Fallschirmjäger he captured and, rather than take a picture in a cap and gown for his senior photo, Alex opted to use a portrait of him in uniform. After graduating, he moved to Los Angeles in 1950 to pursue a career in film. While there, he got a certificate of cinematography from the University of Southern California, married his fiancée Emily in 1951, and worked for a short time as an independent cameraman. He soon moved to Oceanside, CA, however, after finding it hard to break into the industry during the decline in Hollywood during the post-war period. Also in 1951, all of Alex's photos from the war were finally published in his unit's book, "Bridge to Berlin: History of the 296th Engineer Combat Battalion."