Members of the 9th U.S. Marine Expeditionary Force go ashore at Da Nang, South Vietnam, March 8, 1965, and run to assigned positions. The Marines were ordered into Da Nang to beef up defense of the air base nearby from which air strikes against North Vietnam targets had been launched. The 3,500 Marines dispatched on March 8, 1965, marked the start of the ground war in Vietnam.
AP Photo