Near the island of Chichijima in the Western Pacific, Bush's squadron attacked a formation of Japanese ships coming under heavy anti-aircraft fire. Bush released his payload and then made his way back home.
Peter Lissaman, an aeronautics expert who was formerly at Caltech and the University of Southern California, has suggested that a formation of 25 birds might enjoy a range increase of 71%.
Many air forces hope that, one day, a single human pilot might even orchestrate, though not micromanage, a whole fleet of accompanying unmanned planes.
Azerbaijan has launched what it calls " anti-terrorist activities" in the Nagorno-Karabakh region to restore constitutional order and drive out so-called Armenian military formations.
Developments in artificial intelligence and automation will make it possible to operate massive drone fleets simultaneously, increasing efficiency and greatly expanding their capabilities.
It might also be hard for airlines to co-ordinate the departure times and destinations of passenger aircraft in a way that would allow them to gain from formation flight.
We know where international law says we can operate, and I know where international law says we can't, says Rear Admiral John Fuller, the group's commander.