HO CHI MINH CITY (FORMERLY SAIGON), VIETNAM (FORMERLY SOUTH) – U.S. President Barack Obama ended his tour in Vietnam Wednesday morning on a literal high note, as he conducted the traditional American custom of fleeing the country via helicopter.

The President and First Lady were photographed by reporters boarding Marine One from the rooftop of their hotel while Secret Service agents and U.S. Marines desperately battled to hold back throngs of Vietnamese onlookers and well-wishers trying to scramble on board.

Although the White House had initially declared Obama's trip would not be an "apology tour," the president was visibly in tears as he boarded his helicopter, saying goodbye to the thousands of Vietnamese he was forced to leave behind under Communist rule.