The Meteor FR.9 was a purpose-built fighter-reconnaissance jet, equipped with cameras and flown in recon roles during its service. Yet in War Thunder, it’s treated like a plain fighter with no scouting ability — a real missed opportunity.
Adding the scouting mechanic to the FR.9 wouldn’t break balance. It wouldn’t give it any extra weapons or damage potential, just a small utility boost that matches its historical function. It would also encourage more recon-style teamplay in Sim and RB battles, which fits the FR.9’s spirit perfectly.
The aircraft even has “FR” in the name — it’s literally shouting “Fighter Reconnaissance.” Let’s bring that role to life in-game.
Glad you agree! Even something simple like a scouting ping or recon point bonus for spotting could go a long way. It’d make planes like the FR.9 actually feel like they have a purpose beyond just dogfighting
We have had many “Reconaissance” aircraft for a long long time now and they have never really had much interest in adding it to the game, which does somewhat make sense because how would you add it?
Follow a set course in ARB and get rewarded depending on how perfectly you followed that course?
In GRB, some form of Auto-scout would just be insanely OP.
So whilst it would be cool, I just dont see how it can be added
Yeah, fair points — I get that full recon mechanics would be hard to implement cleanly. But I think there’s a middle ground.
They don’t need to overhaul gameplay — just give historically recon-tagged aircraft (like the FR.9) the basic manual scouting ability we already see on light vehicles. No auto-scouting, no passive rewards — just a player-activated spot mechanic to mark targets for the team.
That way, it honors the recon role without unbalancing things. It’d be subtle, but it gives those planes a bit more purpose, especially in Sim where team awareness really matters.
That’s a fair concern — I see where you’re coming from.
Scouting definitely has its strengths, and I agree it could be problematic if not handled carefully. But maybe there’s a lightweight way to include it that doesn’t break balance — like manual scouting with some reasonable limitations (cooldowns, altitude caps, etc.).
I just think it’d be nice if recon-designated aircraft had a little something to reflect their historical role, even if it’s subtle.
Yeah, it would be. The only thing I can think off is just making the Cameras functional, even if you cant actually scout targets you could at least use them like fixed Tpods for finding targets and squad marks.
That would be rather cool.
Dont get me wrong, would enjoy haivng something like a reccy pod for the Tornado or something, with half decent reward in something like ASB for doing proper runs (perhaps in the future SAMs could be unmarked on the map unless someone has flown by with a reccy pod or something)
That actually sounds awesome — making the recon cameras functional, even just as a way to help mark for your squad or ID targets visually, would add so much immersion. Like a poor man’s TGP but era-appropriate.
I really like the idea of recon runs having some kind of effect on the battlefield too, like revealing SAMs or hidden units in ASB. It’s subtle, tactical, and fits the spirit of those aircraft perfectly.
Would love to see something like that for the Tornado or even the FR.9 down the line — doesn’t have to be overpowered, just meaningful.
That’s not how those photo reconnaissance cameras work though, the plane has to RTB and have the film developed to be analyzed, usually under magnifying glasses to see any detail. The Pilot can’t just pull it up in flight.
I mean a PR feature doesn’t really need to be useful, the main thing you’d fly planes out would still be for CAS and CAP, and any “recon” would be an added bonus.
Taking the point about RTB-ing first, it could be workable enough.
Flight run where the camera “scans” (takes pictures) the ground under it.
Return to base, and upon landing the positions of any vehicles seen by the camera are marked on the minimap.
So while not very useful you can use it to root out a camper or two.
It would be useful in something like the SEAD event where Rec planes could overfly the general area, RTB and provide exact SAM/ Radar site locations for the SEAD aircraft. For ground RB, as it is currently, I’m a bit more skeptical of it, if it provided info on location when they where “scanned” along with direction of travel it wouldn’t be un-balanced and useful for off the map flankers, the markers would have to be distinct from the normal enemy markers though to avoid confusion.
Naval EC could be a place they would be useful as BBs are slow enough the info would actually be still be useful and CAS isn’t as oppressive as it is at most ground BRs.
Air RB and SB could have a system where you recon an area and RTB to trigger ground target/ base spawns that the rec plane gets points for finding and a cut of the rewards when they are destroyed.
EDIT: I meant to say it would not be un-balanced having time late markers in GRB
Yeah, I think that last part about recon triggering base spawns in Air RB and SB is actually a really cool concept. It gives recon aircraft a unique and purposeful role without being overpowered — you’re not directly spotting enemies, but you’re enabling objectives for your team. Plus, getting a cut of the rewards adds some incentive without making it a grindy meta-pick.
If Gaijin ever wants to push Air SB or dynamic mission design further, stuff like that could really freshen up the experience. Would love to see recon flights matter in a way that’s subtle but rewarding.
I would add it to a large EC mode with minimal markers for ground targets, utilising recon platforms to find the lil beans to smite. Perhaps some would consider it dull, but I think it would be neat.