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      • Chris Hobson
      • Dave Lovelady
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    • Background to the Wars in Southeast Asia
    • 1961 to 1964: Civil War in Laos/Early Operations in South Vietnam
    • 1965: Escalation of the War/Start of Rolling Thunder
    • 1966: Rolling Thunder Gets into its Stride
    • 1967: Rolling Thunder - The Peak Year
    • 1968: Tet, Khe Sanh, and the End of Rolling Thunder
    • 1969: Interdiction on the Ho Chi Minh Trail
    • 1970: The Year of Withdrawal
    • 1971: A Much Reduced Presence
    • 1972: The Spring Invasion/Linebacker Campaigns
    • 1973: Winding Up the War
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The US Marines Corps in Vietnam (Aug 1964)

It was aviation units that led the US Marine Corps’ contribution to the war in Southeast Asia.  The leading elements of Marine Task Unit 79.3.5 (more commonly known as SHUFLY) arrived at Soc Trang on 9 April 1962.  This unit was would provide the headquarters and command function for a Marine medium lift helicopter squadron that would be based in South Vietnam on a rotational basis.  The first squadron, HMM-362, arrived on 15 April and consisted of 24 UH-34s, three O-1B Bird Dogs (on detachment from VMO-2), and one C-117D transport.  In September 1962 the Marines left Soc Trang for Da Nang which would become their main base in South Vietnam as the Corps was allocated responsibility for the northern provinces closest to the DMZ.  The US Marines would eventually take on responsibility for most US ground operations in I Corps.  The first Marine aircraft lost during the war was a UH-34 of HMM-163 which crashed on 6 October 1962 killing the pilot.  The Bird Dogs were used for a variety of tasks including visual reconnaissance for the helicopters, obtaining intelligence on potential landing sites, providing information on weather prior to a mission, and acting as a battlefield command and radio relay vehicle.

 

 

 

 

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© Chris Hobson and David Lovelady. All Rights Reserved.
  • Home
  • About
    • About Us
      • Chris Hobson
      • Dave Lovelady
    • About the Book
    • About the Data
    • About this Site
  • Sidelines
    • Background to the Wars in Southeast Asia
    • 1961 to 1964: Civil War in Laos/Early Operations in South Vietnam
    • 1965: Escalation of the War/Start of Rolling Thunder
    • 1966: Rolling Thunder Gets into its Stride
    • 1967: Rolling Thunder - The Peak Year
    • 1968: Tet, Khe Sanh, and the End of Rolling Thunder
    • 1969: Interdiction on the Ho Chi Minh Trail
    • 1970: The Year of Withdrawal
    • 1971: A Much Reduced Presence
    • 1972: The Spring Invasion/Linebacker Campaigns
    • 1973: Winding Up the War
  • Statistics
    • Loss Statistics
    • Losses Due to Air Base Attacks
    • Losses Due to Accidents on the Ground or Aboard Ship
    • US Air Force Loss Statistics
    • US Navy Loss Statistics
    • US Marine Corps Loss Statistics
  • Details
    • Order of Battle
    • Index of Names
    • Abbreviations and Glossary of Operations, Code Names, and Projects
    • Bibliography
  • Searching the Database
    • Hints on How to Search
    • Notes and Caveats
    • Search Forms
  • Photo Gallery
  • Contact Us
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