On 8 March 1965, in coordination with the amphibious landing of the 9th Marine Regiment at Red Beach north of Da Nang, the 1st Battalion 3rd Marines landed at Da Nang AB from Naha Air Base, this marked the first deployment of US combat troops to South Vietnam. On 9 March HMM-365 was replaced by HMM-162. The 9th Marine Expeditionary Brigade (9th MEB) were tasked with defending Da Nang AB, while overall responsibility for defending the Da Nang area remained with the ARVN, SHUFLY was absorbed into Marine Aircraft Group 16 (MAG-16), part of 9th MEB.