Modern naval drones have roots in interwar British experiments with the Queen Bee target system. The target aircraft flew from converted HMS Argus, identified as the world's first drone carrier, with that role dated to 1939, possibly 1938. Remotely controlled aircraft existed even earlier. The long development of aerial drones supports caution about how quickly more ambitious submarine-drone wolfpacks will become operational.
Notable Point · 5:01-6:01
Queen Bee and HMS Argus place naval drones in an interwar lineage
British target-drone experiments aboard HMS Argus show that remote-control aviation has a much longer history than today's fleet-autonomy debate suggests.