“James Crossland is joined on History Devil’s by aerospace historian and author Mark Piesing – author of N-4 DOWN the hunt for the Arctic airship Italia – to explore the extraordinary life and legacy of British inventor and “father of drones” Archibald Low (1888–1956), from his early experiments with television to his pioneering work on the First World War’s Aerial Target – one of the first full-size radio-controlled aircraft. The episode traces the development of unmanned aircraft through the interwar years, the Second World War, Operation Crossroads and the Cold War, while examining why Low faded from the development of the technology he helped pioneer.

The conversation also asks what Low’s legacy means in the age of drone warfare, particularly after Ukraine’s use of cheap drones against Russian aircraft and air bases. James and Mark consider both sides of that legacy: drones can provide asymmetric military power and reduce risks to pilots, but remote warfare can also depersonalize conflict, make war easier to wage, and allow increasingly cheap weapons to be used against civilians and military targets alike.”

Listen to it – and read more about – Archibald Low, the father of the drone here.