On 29 April, three UH-34Ds flew a maintenance-inspection team and a Marine security squad from Da Nang into Landing Zone BRAVO to assess the damage suffered by the two helicopters which had been shot down on the first day of SURE WIND 202. The inspection team found that four bullets had struck the Marine aircraft. The VNAF aircraft, on the other hand, was riddled by nearly 30 bullets, including a .50 caliber round that had severed the tail rotor control cable. The inspection team concluded that both helicopters were damaged beyond repair and proceeded to destroy them where they had fallen. Originally, MACV and II Corps planners had anticipated that the Marine helicopters would not be required to support SURE WIND 202 beyond the initial assault. It soon became apparent, however, that the daily helicopter requirements for the operation would exceed the aviation assets available in II Corps. The American command in Saigon, therefore, directed Colonel Merchant’s task element to continue providing support for the duration of the offensive. Accordingly, the task element commander assigned a liaison officer to the 2d ARVN Division headquarters. This officer was tasked with coordinating daily aircraft requirements. When SURE WIND 202 finally ended on 25 May, HMM-364’s crews had contributed 983 sorties and 800 flight hours to the South Vietnamese effort in northwestern II Corps.[11-10] _Operations Elsewhere in I Corps_ While some of HMM-364’s crews continued flying support missions from Quang Ngai, others conducted a critical operation in western I Corps. The mission, which already had been delayed five days because of the Marines’ extensive commitment during the early stages of SURE WIND 202, was executed on 30 April. It involved 17 Marine UH-34Ds, four Army UH-1Bs (two transports and two gunships), two Marine O-1Bs, two VNAF Skyraiders, and one South Vietnamese observation aircraft. Their assignment was to evacuate a 78-man ARVN patrol which had been under frequent enemy fire for six days in the rugged jungle about 42 miles west of Da Nang. The transport helicopters encountered almost continuous small arms fire during the landing and subsequent evacuation. One Marine helicopter carrying a crew of four Marines and five ARVN passengers was shot down while climbing away from the contested landing zone. The pilot made a forced landing in a nearby clearing and the nine men were evacuated under fire by other UH-34Ds. Despite the hazardous nature of the mission, the entire South Vietnamese patrol was removed to the safety of Nam Dong, a well-defended Special Forces camp located in a valley 34 miles west of Da Nang.