Q&A · 3:34:34-3:36:49

World War II combatants with modern drone controls

Local reconnaissance and a speculative RP-3-armed drone illustrate how communications and production capacity could shape this World War II counterfactual.

Question

What if the World War II combatants had modern drone-control technology?

Short answer

Local radio-controlled reconnaissance would be useful, and an armed anti-submarine drone is proposed; the expected Allied advantage is producing workable equipment in much larger numbers.

Notes

The counterfactual grants modern miniaturization and remote-control methods while excluding satellites and modern batteries. Local control and the ability to transmit television images by radio would provide a useful scouting capability. The expected Allied advantage is the capacity to produce workable systems in large numbers and have them available when needed. German development is imagined producing more elaborate equipment later and in much smaller quantities. An armed option is then suggested: a Predator-type drone carrying RP-3 rockets for anti-submarine work, with its possible load offered as an informal estimate.