Doctrine in the Third Drone Age: how NATO should adapt to full spectrum drone warfare.
We are entering a Third Drone Age, one characterized by full spectrum drone warfare (FSDW). FSDW is not one single technology in one domain, but a systems revolution of autonomous air, ground and maritime machines that learn, adapt, and fight as one. NATO members are noting this FSDW transformation...
| Publicado en: | International Affairs Vol. 102; no. 4; pp. 1415 - 1425 |
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| Autores principales: | , , , |
| Formato: | Artículo |
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Oxford University Press / USA
Jul2026
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| Acceso en línea: | Ver este registro en EBSCOhost |
| fields | @attributes: recordID: 1 pdfLink: plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ssf&AN=195222517&site=ehost-live header: @attributes: shortDbName: ssf uiTerm: 195222517 longDbName: Social Sciences Full Text (H.W. Wilson) uiTag: AN controlInfo: bkinfo: jinfo: jid: 00205850 INA jtl: International Affairs issn: 00205850 maglogo: N pubinfo: dt: Jul2026 vid: 102 iid: 4 pid: 622 pub: Oxford University Press / USA artinfo: ui: 195222517 10.1093/ia/iiag092 ppf: 1415 ppct: 10 formats: tig: atl: Doctrine in the Third Drone Age: how NATO should adapt to full spectrum drone warfare. aug: au: Rogers, James Patton Kunertova, Dominika Hutto, James Wesley Redmond, Elizabeth H affil: Jeb E. Brooks School of Public Policy, Cornell University, 2201 Martha Van Rensselaer Hall, Ithaca, NY 14853-0001, United States 1) Harvard Kennedy School, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs 2) Peace Research Center Prague, Department of Social Sciences, Charles University School of Advanced Air and Space Studies, Air University, Maxwell AFB, Alabama, United States Cornell Tech Policy Institute, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA su: North Atlantic Treaty Organization Drone warfare Military doctrine Autonomous vehicles Military strategy Autonomous robots Military technology Interagency coordination sug: subj: North Atlantic Treaty Organization Drone warfare Military doctrine Autonomous vehicles Military strategy Autonomous robots Military technology Interagency coordination keyword: copyrightHolder:The Royal Institute of International Affairs copyrightYear:2026 European security inLanguage:en international security military intervention publisher:Oxford University Press sameAs:https://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiag092 war copyrightHolder:The Royal Institute of International Affairs copyrightYear:2026 European security inLanguage:en international security military intervention publisher:Oxford University Press sameAs:https://dx.doi.org/10.1093/ia/iiag092 war ab: We are entering a Third Drone Age, one characterized by full spectrum drone warfare (FSDW). FSDW is not one single technology in one domain, but a systems revolution of autonomous air, ground and maritime machines that learn, adapt, and fight as one. NATO members are noting this FSDW transformation and are heavily investing in unmanned systems across domains, yet without a shared framework for integrating them. The question is not whether to buy drones to strengthen NATO's deterrence posture and strategic autonomy, but whether NATO members can build the doctrine, software, supply-chain and allied institutional capacity to deploy them more effectively than their adversaries. Put simply, mass alone is not an effective strategy, and a doctrinal shift is needed. This policy paper identifies two major variables that will determine whether FSDW will deliver military advantage in future wars: mature cross-domain unmanned teaming and effective doctrinal adaptation. States that achieve both technological and institutional change gain decisive operational advantages. Those that simply accumulate platforms without updating doctrine risk spending heavily while falling behind. Combining these variables produces four possible futures for NATO out to 2040, from full FSDW integration to platform stagnation. The most pressing risk is technology without strategy—a scenario where mature hardware is paired with outdated doctrine. pubtype: Academic Journal doctype: Article src: R language: English refInfo: copyright: @attributes: flag: N holdings: @attributes: islocal: N |
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