This comes up often enough in War Thunder that it deserves a straight answer rather than a thread to scroll through.

Short answer

In most cases the straightforward approach works. The exceptions are specific and listed below.

  • Try the straightforward approach before the elaborate one.
  • Revisit after a major patch if the behaviour changes.
  • Region and platform change more than people expect, so confirm both.

War Thunder models more of the vehicle than it tells you about, and the grind punishes guessing. Testing this yourself takes a few minutes and settles it definitively. Nothing here depends on a setting you are unlikely to have.

When the usual advice fails

War Thunder is not shy about hiding useful information two menus deep, so some of this is simply knowing where to look. It is worth separating what the game does from what players have concluded it does. Edge cases are genuinely rare, which is why the simple answer is usually the correct one. If you are coming to this after a long break, the terminology has probably moved on.

The accepted community answer is broadly right and wrong in a specific way that matters here. Most of the disagreement online comes from people describing different versions of War Thunder. Screenshots age faster than text, which is why this describes rather than shows.

What to do instead

The mechanic behind it is simpler than the discussion around it suggests. None of this needs a paid tool, a third-party launcher or an account on a site you have never heard of. Most of the disagreement you will find online is two people describing different builds.

  • Check which version any conflicting advice was written for.
  • Do not build a routine around an edge case.
  • Prefer the in-game option over an external tool when both exist.
  • Note the exception cases — they are specific rather than vague.

The practical answer

The short version is near the top on purpose; the reasoning is there if you want to know why. Nothing here assumes a particular playstyle beyond wanting the thing to work. The community wisdom on this is roughly half right, and the half that is wrong costs the most time. What follows assumes you are on a current install and have not modified it.

There is no hidden trick here that the game is keeping from you. Anything that behaves differently on console than on PC is flagged where it matters. Where two approaches both work, the one with fewer moving parts is the one to keep.

Worth knowing alongside this

A single check up front replaces a lot of guessing later. The awkward part is rarely the step itself, it is knowing which step comes first. Treat anything stated without a version number as provisional.

Half the pages on this topic were written for a build that no longer exists, which is why they stop matching what you see. If your result differs from what is described here, note what is different first rather than starting over. If a step reads as obvious, do it anyway — the obvious ones are the ones people skip and then wonder about.

Why it works this way

Everything below is framed around the current state of War Thunder rather than a launch-week impression. It helps to understand why a step exists, because then you can adapt it when your situation is slightly different. Patch notes move numbers around constantly; the shape of the answer holds even when a specific value shifts.

Where people go wrong

  • Copying a setup wholesale from a streamer without understanding what each part does.
  • Ignoring the platform-specific note and then wondering why the steps do not line up.
  • Grinding a method that was patched months ago because a thread still ranks well.

War Thunder FAQ

Does this change between platforms?

The behaviour does not. Where menu paths or prompts differ, that is noted above.

Why do people disagree about this?

Mostly because they are describing different versions. Version drift explains the majority of contradictory advice about War Thunder.

Does this work the same on console and PC?

The logic is identical. Menu paths and button prompts differ, and any real difference is flagged above.

Why do other guides describe this differently?

Most were written for an earlier version and never revisited. Compare the steps against what your build actually shows.

Work through it in the order above and drone test flight stops being a question you have to look up again.