HMM-364, commanded by Lieutenant Colonel John H. La Voy, a pilot who had flown his first combat helicopter missions during the Korean War, initiated support operations from Da Nang on 1 February. Under the existing plans to deactivate the Marine task element, La Voy’s squadron was scheduled to be the last Marine helicopter unit to operate in South Vietnam. As such, HMM-364’s pilots and maintenance crews were to launch the training program that would prepare the Vietnamese Air Force personnel to take over the Marine helicopters upon the task element’s departure from Da Nang. On 4 February the first class of eight Vietnamese pilots began a 50-hour package of flight instruction under the supervision of Lieutenant Colonel La Voy’s pilots. Included in the course of instruction were operational missions, night and instrument flying, formation work, and landing practice. Each student was already a qualified copilot with at least 25 flight hours in VNAF UH-34s--a factor which allowed the training to be conducted concurrently with normal operations. This was accomplished by having the Vietnamese trainees fly as copilots with a Marine pilot on operational flights. In addition to being an effective training method this system had two other advantages. First, it enabled the Vietnamese students to acquire a first-hand knowledge of the helicopter tactics most commonly used in the northern provinces. Secondly, it allowed Lieutenant Colonel La Voy’s squadron to concentrate on its primary mission of providing combat support for the ground forces in I Corps. Another vital aspect of the training program involved preparing Vietnamese ground personnel to keep the squadron operational. This demanded extensive training of mechanics, crew chiefs, engineering, supply, operations, and ordnance personnel. “This additional duty,” Lieutenant Colonel La Voy explained, “was a tremendous burden on all departments of my squadron, whose primary job was to keep aircraft in commission and to conduct combat operations.” The language barrier understandably threatened the success of the overall training effort. In La Voy’s opinion, however, “the eagerness of the students to learn and the wealth of practical experience and varied demonstrations” combined to help reduce problems imposed by the language difference.[11-7] The progress of the program proved the concepts sound. The first small group of student pilots was graduated on 9 March despite numerous flight cancellations due to bad weather during the training period. Subsequent classes of VNAF pilots continued to train with the Marine helicopter task element throughout 1964. Eventually, a more advanced training program would have the Vietnamese pilots flying sections of two and four helicopters as integral elements of larger Marine helicopter operations.