War by remote control, how drones changed modern warfare

War by remote control, how drones changed modern warfare

From Throughline by NPR

May 14, 2026 · 51 min

About this episode

This episode explores how drones have transformed modern warfare, featuring insights from war historian James Rodgers.

Drones are swarming battlefields in Ukraine, Iran, and beyond. Drone warfare is cheap, efficient, autonomous — and changing warfare forever. Today on the show, the past, present and future of battle by remote control. This episode originally published in 2021 and has been updated. GUEST: James Rodgers , war historian and author of several books about drones, including Drones: What Everyone Needs to Know To access bonus episodes and listen to Throughline sponsor-free, subscribe to Throughline+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org/throughline . See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences. NPR Privacy Policy

People in this episode

Guest: James Rodgers

Topics covered

  • drone warfare
  • modern warfare
  • autonomous weapons
  • military technology
  • history of warfare

Keywords

  • drones
  • warfare
  • Ukraine
  • Iran
  • military
  • autonomy
  • history

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: NPR

Books & works: Drones: What Everyone Needs to Know

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