
152 Maurice Nevile
Maurice Nevile
Seeing on the move: Mobile collaboration
on the battlefield
1. Introduction
In 2003, in the early days of the Iraq War, a US Air Force pilot identified with
the call-sign ‘Popov36’ announced his impending attack on a group of ve-
hicles, which he determined to be enemy rocket launchers. He did so in
terms of mobility: Popov Three Six ah:: is rolling in¿ (excerpt 1). The phrase
“rolling in”” refers to dipping one wing and simultaneously lowering the air-
craft’s nose to initiate a diving turn. This attacking flight manoeuvre requires
Popov36 to break from the current relative stability and predictability of a
patrolling ...