The Gyrodyne DASH (Drone Anti-Submarine Helicopter) was a drone helicopter part of the US Navy Fleet Rehabilitation and Modernization (FRAM) program. Instead of building new frigates, the FRAM upgrade allowed World War II-era destroyers, which had little room for a new flight deck, to remain useful in modern naval warfare adding to them a stand-off weapon to attack out to the edge of the sonars range. the QH-50 was retired by the US Navy frontline ships in 1969 and a handful of QH-50Ds ramain with the US Army for testing/ drone use at White Sands until 1997. The shipborne variant remain in Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force service until 1977
Derivatives & Versions of DSN / QH-50 DASH |
| Model | Year | History |
|---|---|---|
| DSN-1 / QH-50A 1958 | 1958 | Powered by a single 72 HP Porsche engine, the DNS-1 was the droned version of Gyrodynes optimized XRON-1 Rotorcycle which had a 20 rotor diameter ...  |
| DSN-2 / QH-50B 1958 | 1958 | After initial success with the 9 DNS-1 prototypes, the Navy ordered three Aircraft [N-200 to N-202] under Contract NOas 59-0219-c, Amendment 1. ... |
| DSN-3 / QH-50C 1960 | 1960 | This was the initial production version of the DASH helicopter featuring a single Boeing T50-BO-8 gas-turbine engine and the ability to carry two ... |
| QH-50D 1966 | 1966 | This was the definitive production version with a more modern Boeing T50-BO-12 engine, rated at 330 BHP. Tail section removed from the earlier C ... |
| QH-50D Nite Panther 1968 | 1968 | Experimental targeting and spotting drone for USMC. Three conversion from QH-50D during Apr68. |
| QH-50E 1969 | 1969 | The Navy asked Gyrodyne to develop an Allison powered YQH-50E when Boeing ceased building its 365 shp model 550-1 turbo-shaft engine (military de ... |
List of Operators of DSN / QH-50 DASH |
| Years | Model | Org | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960/70 |  US Navy | ||
| 1966/77 |  Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force |
Global Distribution of DSN / QH-50 DASH |
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