The expansion of aerial reconnaissance during WWII was driven mostly by trial and error rather than by planned development.
Notes on verification
Matches Wikipedia's phrasing closely, but independent military history sources (DTIC thesis, SAAM document) corroborate the underlying narrative of ad hoc, experience-driven development of aerial reconnaissance doctrine and technology during WWII. [tier=gold indep_score=0.867 clusters=3 claim_tier=notable]
Sources
- Aerial reconnaissance in World War II (wikipedia)
- https://apps.dtic.mil/sti/tr/pdf/ADA501753.pdf (corroboration)
- https://www.saam.org.au/history_group_docs/SAAM%20History%20-%20Aerial%20Photography%20Pt3%20WWII.pdf (corroboration)
- https://military-history.fandom.com/wiki/Aerial_reconnaissance_in_World_War_II (corroboration)