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In 1946, the United States conducted a series of nuclear weapons tests known as Operation Crossroads at Bikini Atoll. To collect data from inside the radioactive mushroom cloud, the military used remote-controlled aircraft. Fighters like the Grumman F6F Hellcat and bombers such as the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress were converted into drones and flown through the atomic test area. In this video, we follow the preparation, launch, and recovery of these unusual aircraft—including operations aboard the aircraft carrier USS Shangri-La (CV-38) and the surprising discovery made when the drones returned from the radioactive cloud. These strange orange aircraft were among the earliest examples of unmanned aircraft performing dangerous scientific missions—decades before modern drones. 0:00 Intro 1:23 Atomic Bomb Testing 1:46 Operation Crossroads 2:24 WWII Drone Technology 3:30 Converting F6F Hellcats into Drones 4:05 Early R/C Technology 5:10 Deep dives into history 5:53 USS Shangri-La 6:54 Unknown aviation history 8:18 Launching early drones 11:11 Fly through nuclear test clouds 12:12 How to recover the drones? 14:06 Contaminated Radioactive Planes 16:37 Early versions of drones 17:01 Drone crashes Video Credit: US National Archives @USNationalArchives Become a History X member to support this channel and get access to perks: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCipNKcqzEsM5_OQWBm_X6IQ/join COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER UNDER SECTION 107 OF THE COPYRIGHT ACT OF 1976, ALLOWANCE IS MADE FOR “FAIR USE” FOR PURPOSES SUCH AS CRITICISM, COMMENT, NEWS REPORTING, TEACHING, SCHOLARSHIP, EDUCATION AND RESEARCH. FAIR USE IS A USE PERMITTED BY COPYRIGHT STATUTE THAT MIGHT OTHERWISE BE INFRINGING. Screen captures and motion clips used in this video are protected by the Fair Use Law, section 107 used for commentary, criticism, news reporting or education for transformative use. https://www.copyright.gov/fair-use/more-info.html #OperationCrossroads #WWIIHistory #AviationHistory #DroneHistory #MilitaryHistory