Operation Bumblebee Operation Bumblebee was a US Navy effort to develop surface to air missile s ( SAMs ) to provide a mid - range layer of anti - aircraft defence , between anti - aircraft gun s in the short range and fighter aircraft operating at long range . A major reason for the Bumblebee efforts was the need to attack bombers before they could launch standoff anti - shipping weapons , as these aircraft might never enter the range of the shipboard guns . Bumblebee originally concentrated on a ramjet powered design , and the initial Applied Physics Lab PTV - N - 4 Cobra / BTV ( Propulsion Test Vehicle / Burner Test Vehicle ) was flown in October 1945 . The Cobra eventually emerged as the RIM - 8 Talos , which entered service on 28 May 1958 aboard the USS " Galveston " . As part of the development program , several other vehicles were also developed . One of these developed into the RIM - 2 Terrier , which gained operational status on the USS " Canberra " on 15 June 1956 , two years before the Talos . The Terrier was later modified as a short - range missile system for smaller ships , entering service in 1963 as the RIM - 24 Tartar . Together , the three missiles were known as the " 3 T ' s " . Bumblebee was not the only early Navy SAM project ; the SAM - N - 2 Lark was rushed into production as a short - range counter to the Kamikaze threat , but never matured into an operational weapon . Origin . Navy ships were hit by air - launched Henschel Hs 293 glide bomb s and Fritz X anti - ship missile s during 1943 . A ramjet - powered anti - aircraft missile was proposed to destroy aircraft launching such weapons while remaining beyond the range of shipboard artillery . Initial performance goals were target intercept at a horizontal range of 10 miles and 30 , 000 feet altitude , with a 300 to 600 pound warhead for a 30 to 60 percent kill probability . Heavy shipping losses to Kamikaze attacks during the Battle of Okinawa provided additional incentive for guided missile development . Field testing . In addition to initial tests at the Island Beach , New Jersey , and Fort Miles , Delaware , temporary sites , Camp Davis , North Carolina , was used for Operation Bumblebee from c . June 1 , 1946 , to July 28 , 1948 . Topsail Island , North Carolina , became the permanent Bumblebee testing and launch facility in March 1947 . The Topsail Historical Society hosts the Missiles and More Museum at the site . Testing was transferred to Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake and then to White Sands Missile Range in 1951 where was built as a prototype Talos launch facility . Program results . The RIM - 2 Terrier , devised as a test vehicle , became operational as a fleet anti - aircraft missile aboard " USS Boston " in 1955 , and evolved into the RIM - 66 Standard . Talos became operational with the fleet aboard " USS Galveston " in February , 1959 , and saw combat use during the Vietnam War . Ramjet knowledge acquired during the program aided development of the XB - 70 Valkyrie and the SR - 71 Blackbird . Solid fuel boosters developed to bring the ramjet to operational velocity formed the basis for larger solid fuel rocket motors for ICBM s , satellite launch vehicles and the space shuttle .