Let me explain it a little differently...
If the game drew every inch of the terrain no matter where you're at it would require massive processing power to do so, along with a very powerful video card. So, HTC made an option that prevents it by allowing the user to decide when and at what distance the terrain detail will be drawn. Same with airplanes. If all airplanes in the arena were drawn regardless of your location, it would take massive processing power along with a powerful video card to do so. Again, HTC prevents this by capping the range at which you see an aircraft and when the game starts to draw it.
This I believe is the same with the drones. If they get too far away from the formation more system resources will be required to keep those bombers in formation. Either that or this particular game engine just isn't able to keep the bombers in formation when they drop x distance behind and therefore initiates the destruction of the drones.
Hmmmm, ok, that's a good explanation for now. I'd love it if someone from HTC would actually give us the low down on bomber drones.
The popping drones is a punishment for flying a bomber in a way it wasn't designed to be flown. If your flying in formation you don't pull hard manuvers. It's that simple. If you do you loose your drones. Makes perfect sense.
Yes, but it punishes the attacker, too, so it's not a good system. It drives me nuts when the bombers I'm attacking go poof into thin air just because the guy tried to maneuver. Wouldn't it be punishment enough for the drones to take many minutes to regain formation, and therefore the bomber pilot is stripped of his defensive help? I think so. Moreover, you're not addressing the point that bomber drones will follow their leader through an immelman but not a hard banking turn; that's backwards and wrong.
Fwiw, the JU-88 drones suffer the same restrictions as B-17s, even though the JU-88 was employed as a dive bomber and a night fighter, so it was clearly designed for more rigorous maneuvers than slow banking turns.