Could escorts use drones for airborne early warning?

Will destroyers gain airborne-early-warning drones?

They could improve radar coverage and warning, but the useful payloads, endurance, cost, and launch platform all constrain the concept.

The discussion sees an elevated radar as a way to extend the horizon against fast and low-flying threats. A tethered drone could lift a sensor hundreds of feet above a Type 45 while remaining inside the destroyer's defensive envelope. Free-flying aircraft would provide wider coverage but need more endurance, payload, communications, and recovery support. The more capable the system becomes, the larger both drone and host tend to become, eventually recreating the need for a carrier-sized aviation platform.