"It just becomes that much more difficult," Lieutenant Commander John Enfield, an F/A-18 Hornet pilot, told reporters aboard this aircraft carrier in the Gulf.

"We want to inflict as little damage as possible on Baghdad, on its infrastructure. We only want to take out military targets so in that sense we'll be even more aware than normal," said Lieutenant Junior Grade Greg Kausner, 26, who flies F-14 Tomcat fighters.

Pilots dropping laser-guided bombs during close air support missions for soldiers on the ground are required to visually identify their targets to ensure they are military assets and not friendly forces.

That's easier to do in the open where vehicles clearly stand out if they are dug in along a canal, for example, said Enfield, of Strike Fighter Squadron 27, the Royal Maces.

"When you're in the cities now it takes some very precise control, a lot more time and a lot more effort to make sure that you're only going to hit exactly what you're talking about and nothing else around it," he said.

Precision is also aided by using 500-pound bombs, the smallest available, he said.

"It's basically more of a command and control difficulty than anything else. It takes more time to make sure you're going for exactly the right thing," said Enfield, 34, of the Los Angeles area.

The pilot's job will not necessarily become more dangerous, "just slightly more complex," said Enfield, who returned late Friday from a mission targeting artillery west of Baghdad and north of Saddam International Airport.

Another Kitty Hawk pilot with him successfully bombed the artillery after co-ordination with ground troops.

Enfield's own targeting system malfunctioned, forcing the second pilot to try guiding Enfield's two bombs by laser to the target.

The first one went about 200 metres wide and landed among some previously-destroyed vehicles, Enfield said.

"We elected at that point not to drop the last bomb just because we weren't sure of the guidance capabities," he said. "It's very rare that it happens."

As fighting becomes focused on the Iraqi capital, Enfield sees pilots becoming slightly less busy.

Fighter-bombers need a lot of airspace and as the battlefield shrinks there will be a limit to how many planes can squeeze in there.

"There's a lot of airplanes up there right now. You gotta keep your eyeballs out lookin' for the other guys," he said.

SPACE.WIRE