By the time HMM-361 had removed the last ARVN troops from the hills around the scene of the tragic accidents, monsoon weather had begun to restrict flight operations. The remaining two weeks of October were characterized by a reduced number of missions, most of which were either resupply or medical evacuations. By the end of October, despite numerous flight cancellations, Lieutenant Colonel Ross’ crews had gained the unenviable distinction of having attracted more enemy fire during a one month period than any previous squadron to serve with SHUFLY. Their helicopters had been shot at on 46 different occasions and had been hit 18 times.[9-10] SHUFLY’s combat support operations came to a halt in the first days of November as the reverberations from Diem’s overthrow spread to South Vietnam’s northern provinces. American officials in Washington and Saigon, aware of the pitfalls that might accompany open support of either side in the power struggle, ordered all U.S. military forces to cease advisory and combat support activities. As a result of the sensitive political situation, no U.S. aircraft left the ground on 2 November. Two days after the new regime seized power in Saigon, the U.S. Marine helicopters were permitted to perform emergency medical evacuation and emergency resupply missions. Even these flights were to be approved beforehand by ARVN military officers in Saigon. Four days after Diem’s overthrow, the new leaders in Saigon eased the political restrictions and SHUFLY’s operations returned to near normal. One remaining limitation stipulated that U.S. helicopters could not transport ARVN units into population centers even though troops could be helilifted from the cities into rural areas. Due to torrential monsoon rains which began striking the Da Nang area in mid-November, HMM-361’s combat support operations continued at a relatively low level throughout the remainder of the year. This trend was confirmed by the flight totals compiled for the final two months of 1963. In November, the squadron’s UH-34Ds flew only 145 sorties for 233 flight hours. December’s statistics, 230 helicopter sorties for 338 flight hours, indicated a slight upswing but fell far short of the monthly figures achieved earlier in the year. With rain and fog frequently rendering the mountains inaccessible by air, the preponderance of the squadron’s missions were conducted along the coastal plains. As 1963 ended SHUFLY’s combat support operations were continuing at a greatly reduced rate. _The Situation in Vietnam_