when & where was the first use of helicopter in war?

Answer 1

Check out this link, it might help.
Yahoo "first helicopter used in war" to get site entitled: It is by the U.S. Centennial of Flight Commissiont"---the link wouldn't work right before, sorry.

Helicopters at War (Excerpt)
Helicopters played an inconsequential role in World War II. However, they did see service to a limited extent as supply craft and for rescue operations in the China-Burma-India theater, and were operated by the 1st Air Commando unit. World War II demonstrated that the helicopter could perform useful missions, but the helicopters of the day were still limited in their power, size, and hence their capabilities.

Site 2:
http://www.arikah.com/encyclopedia/Helicopter

Excerpt from site: World War II
Nazi Germany used the helicopter in combat during WWII in small numbers. Models such as the Focke-Achgelis Fa 223 which was the first helicopter to enter series production in 1941, and the Flettner FL 282 Kolibri were used in the Mediterranean Sea.

Another site:
http://asms.k12.ar.us/classes/humanities/amstud/97-98/helicptr/webpage.htm

Sorry, had a little trouble with these links at first. Good luck. BTW, Blackhawks Rule!

Answer 2

indeed the R 4 was the first real helicopter in use in a war the FW 61 is for me not a real helicopter more a VSTOL ( very short take of and landing ) .
The first general use of a helicopter could be seen in the war of Korea where the helicopter was used in the dust off role .
There he saved many lives because they wounded where brought to the MASH hospitals in the quickest way ( like the BEL 13 )

Answer 3

I think the first "helicopter" was in fact an autogyro and was built in Germany in the early 30s; the first US made helicopter was the R-1, made by Russian inventor, Igor Sikorsky and made it's first debut in the late stages of WW2; the first massive use of the helicopter in war was in Korea, where the Bell 47D helicopter was used to ferry wounded to MASH hospitals, therefore the helicopter was used as an air ambulance for the first time in Korea.

Answer 4

I copied my Navy answer here as it answers the "first" question.

But the Americans used a truly independent helicopter!


The American R-4 did in 1942 conduct a real at sea rescue and was later deployed to the Pacific by the Army on Navy ships: Aircraft Repair ships that went to all the island airbases for our B-29's. In late 1944, in Burma Carter Hall Army Air Corps piloted the first helicopter rescue of a downed aircrew, in 1945 in the Philippines the Army conducted several medical evacuations of wounded soldiers on Luzon.

So all are correct except that the first medical was 1945 Luzon
and the first rescue was Burma.

visit:

www.Dustoff.org
for history of Army aero-medical evacuation.

Some of the WWII pilots are still around! We lost Carter Harmon a few years back; there are some photos of some of these men. I was honored to actually speak with many.

Simple - Former Army Aero-medical Evacuation "DUSTOFF" Historian

The Spring 1945 Luzon missions were under fire and they took men from the mountains directly to Army hospitals, just like MASH in Korea. My role was in Vietnam UH-1's, now it is the Blackhawk!

Answer 5

The German Focke-Wulf FW-61 was the first production fully controllable helicopter and had its first flight in 1936. The FW-61 broke all world records in 1937. Nazi Germany used the helicopter in combat during World War II in small numbers. Models such the Flettner FL 282 Kolibri were used in the Mediterranean Sea.

Answer 6

ww2. the germans use it.