The Geographies of Military Airspaces
Lead Research Organisation:
Newcastle University
Department Name: Sch of Geog, Politics and Sociology
Abstract
Abstracts are not currently available in GtR for all funded research. This is normally because the abstract was not required at the time of proposal submission, but may be because it included sensitive information such as personal details.
People |
ORCID iD |
| Alison Williams (Principal Investigator / Fellow) |
Publications
Adey P
(2012)
Introduction: Air-target Distance, Reach and the Politics of Verticality
in Theory, Culture & Society
Ward K
(2011)
Reading Peter Adey's Aerial Life
in Political Geography
Wastl-Walter, Doris
(2011)
The Ashgate Research Companion to Border Studies
Williams A
(2011)
Enabling persistent presence? Performing the embodied geopolitics of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicle assemblage
in Political Geography
Williams A
(2013)
Re-Orientating Vertical Geopolitics
in Geopolitics
Williams A
(2010)
Reconceptualising spaces of the air: performing the multiple spatialities of UK military airspaces
in Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers
Williams A
(2014)
Disrupting air power: Performativity and the unsettling of geopolitical frames through artworks
in Political Geography
| Description | There have been several project findings ranging from the conceptual and empirical, to the methodological and also related to the non-research objectives of the Fellowship. 1) Conceptually, the project has developed a new way of understanding airspaces that draws upon geopolitical literatures and performativity theories to suggest the ways in which military airspaces are continually brought into being and performed through the practices of military and civilian personnel, through the textual and visual documents that describe and delimit these spaces and through the interpretation of these documents by those performing the spaces. These findings have been published as Williams (2011). 3) Drawing from this conceptual framing the project has also focused upon the legislative aspects of airspaces and how the notion of state airspace is enshrined in international law and flouted by states. This has been published as Williams (2010). 2) One of the key aims of the project was to look at the use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles by the UK military. In analysing the development and operation of this craft, the project has been able to illustrate changes to the ways in which airspaces are performed and practiced when these craft are in use. This work has also sought to illustrate the utility of using a feminist geopolitics-inspired framework to analyse not only the victims of conflict, but also the individuals involved in its prosecution. This work will be published as Williams (forthcoming - Political Geography). 3) Methodologically, the project has illustrated the difficulties inherent in accessing serving military personnel and the need to use nuanced interviewing styles in order to go beyond standard 'prescribed' answers to uncover personal experiences and opinions. Comments on these issues will be published in Williams (forthcoming - Political Geography). 4) One of the most interesting findings from the project has been the identification of the lack of available resources on the methodologies of doing critically informed social-science and humanities research on and with the military. This led to the organisation (in collaboration with Prof Rachel Woodward, Dr Neil Jenkings and Matthew Rech) of a two-day workshop on 'Military Methods' held at Newcastle University in 2011. An edited book from this event is in process. 5) Career development was one of the three objectives of this Fellowship. To that end over the course of the Fellowship period I have completed Newcastle University's academic teaching course and have become a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, I have co-supervised a PhD student (Matthew Rech - due to submit in Winter 2011), have become Vice Chair of the RGS-IBG Political Geography Research Group, and have taken on two administration roles within the School - Power, Space, Politics cluster leader and Careers Liaison and Employability Officer. I have also successfully applied for internal funding for two small projects. One of these, looking at the University Armed Service Units, is related to this project and is currently being developed as an ESRC grant application with Prof Rachel Woodward. |
| Exploitation Route | It may be used for further academic study |
| Sectors | Education |
| Description | The findings from this project have been used to write academic journal articles |
| First Year Of Impact | 2010 |
| Sector | Aerospace, Defence and Marine,Education,Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Impact Types | Cultural,Societal,Policy & public services |
| Title | Aircrew interviews |
| Description | approx 17 interviews with small groups of serving military aviators |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Provided To Others? | No |
| Impact | none to date |