Crowds look on as the super moon rises behind the Fremantle War Memorial at Monument Hill on November 14, 2016 in Fremantle, Australia. A super moon occurs when a full moon passes closes to earth than usual, with the November 14th moon expected to be closer than it has been in over 70 years. (Photo by Paul Kane/Getty Images)

Humanoid robots compete in a group match of the 20th RoboCup in Leipzig, Germany, June 30, 2016. About 3,500 participants from 45 countries and regions compete in the robot world championship until 04 July. (Photo by Sebastian Willnow/EPA)

Steve Shirts, aka “Strike Pony”, left, gets a hug from Amber Snyder, aka “Ditsy Dots” in Baltimore, MD on July 8, 2016. Both are from Suburban Chicago. BronyCon is the world's largest My Pretty Pony convention. Featuring cosplay and fan events, the annual convention was held at the Baltimore Convention Center. (Photo by Andre Chung/The Washington Post)

In the spring of 1965, within weeks of 3,500 American Marines arriving in Vietnam, a 39-year-old Briton named Larry Burrows began work on a feature for LIFE magazine, chronicling the day-to-day experience of U.S. troops on the ground – and in the air – in the midst of the rapidly widening war. The photographs in this gallery focus on a calamitous March 31, 1965, helicopter mission; Burrows’ “report from Da Nang”, featuring his pictures and his personal account of the harrowing operation, was published two weeks later as a now-famous cover story in the April 16, 1965, issue of LIFE.

Photo: Man your battle stations: The crew chief of helicopter Yankee Papa 13, lance corporal James C. Farley, mans an M-60 machine gun during a mission near Da Nang, Vietnam on March 31, 1965. (Photo by Larry Burrows/Time & Life Pictures)

Siberian Huskies pull a contestant during the “Kara-Dag 2016” open amateur dog sled and skijoring race near the village of Yelovoye in Taiga district, outside Krasnoyarsk, Siberia, Russia, February 21, 2016. Dogs and their owners from various regions of Siberia took part in an annual race. (Photo by Ilya Naymushin/Reuters)

Guo Meiling of China jumps her Mini into the road during the 38th Dakar Rally in Arrecifes, Argentina, January 2, 2016. (Photo by Reuters/Stringer)

“Chewbacca Mom” Candace Payne attends the 2016 CMT Music awards at the Bridgestone Arena on June 8, 2016 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/WireImage)

Let the fun begin. Revellers carry their belongings as they arrive at Worthy Farm in Somerset for the Glastonbury Festival, Britain, June 22, 2016. Around 180,000 are expected to attend. (Photo by Ben Birchall/PA Wire)