Naval Helicopter Historical Society
Timelines
1950s
May 23, 1957
A drone HTK-1 helicopter, carrying a safety pilot, operated from the fantail of Mitscher (DL 2) in the vicinity of Narragansett Bay. These tests and others, conducted in February off Key West, in which a piloted HUL-1 carried Mk 43 torpedoes in flights to and from the Mitscher, demonstrated the feasibility of assigning torpedo carrying drone helicopters to destroyers and led to the development of the Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter (DASH) which was later embodied in the QH-50C.
2011