Military Glossary

AIRBURST - explosion of ammunition in the air
AIR CAV - air cavalry, referring to helicopter-borne infantry
AIT - Advanced Individual Training; the period following Basic Training, specialized training given each soldier based on his MOS (Military Occupational Specialty)
AK-47 - Soviet manufactured Kalashnikov semi-automatic combat assault rifle, fires a 7.62-mm at 600 rounds per minute. The basic weapon of the NVA
ALPHA-ALPHA - automatic ambush, a combination of claymore mines configured to detonate simultaneously when triggered by a trip-wire/battery mechanism
AO - Area of operations
APC - armored personnel carrier. A track vehicle used to transport Army troops or supplies, usually armed with a .50 caliber machine gun
ARC LIGHT OPERATIONS - code name for the devastating aerial raids of B-52 Stratofortresses against enemy positions in Southeast Asia. The first B-52 Arc Light raid took place on June 18, 1965, on a suspected Vietcong base north of Saigon. In November 1965, B-52s directly supported American ground forces for the first time, and were used regularly for that purpose thereafter
ARCOMS - Army Commendation Medals
ARTICLE 15 - summary disciplinary judgment of a soldier by his commander, could result in fines or confinement in the stockade
ARTY - artillery
ARVN - Army of the Republic of Vietnam (Army of South Vietnam)
BANANA CLIP - banana shaped magazine, standard on the AK-47 assault rifle
BASE CAMP - semi-permanent field headquarters and center for a given unit, usually within that unit's tactical areas responsibility. A unit could operate in or away from its base camp. Base camps usually contained all or part of a given unit's support elements
BATTALION - organizational institution in the Army and Marine Corps. Commanded by a lieutenant colonel, an infantry battalion usually has around 900 people, and an artillery battalion of about 500 people. During the Vietnam War, American battalions were usually much smaller than that
BEEHIVE - a direct-fire artillery round which incorporated steel darts (fleshettes), used as a primary base defense munition against ground attack
BIRD - any aircraft, usually helicopters
BOUNCING BETTY - an antipersonnel mine with two charges. The first propels the explosive charge upward and the other is set to explode at about waist level
BRIGADE - basic military organizational institution. During the Vietnam War, a division was organized into three brigades, with each brigade commanded by a colonel. A division consists of approximately 20,000 people
BRING SMOKE - to direct intense artillery fire on an enemy position
C-4 - plastic, putty textured explosive carried by infantry soldiers. It burns when lit and would boil water in seconds instead of minutes. Also used to heat c-rations in the field and blow up bunkers
CACHE - hidden supplies
CAV - nickname for air cavalry
C & C - command and control
CHARLIE, CHARLES, CHUCK Vietcong - short for the phonetic representation of "VC": Victor Charlie"
CHERRY - a new troop replacement
CHICKEN PLATE - chest protector (body armor) worn by helicopter gunners
CHICOM – Chinese Communist
CHURCH KEY - bottle opener
CIB – Combat Infantry Badge
CLACKER - firing device ("exploder") for triggering claymore mines and other electrically initiated demolitions
CLAYMORE – an antipersonnel mine when detonated, propelled small steel projectiles in a 60-degree fan-shaped pattern to a maximum distance of 100 meters
COBRA – an AH-1G attack helicopter armed with rockets and machine guns
COMPANY - organizational institution commanded by a captain and consisting of two or more platoons; in Vietnam, varied widely in size according to mission
C's, C-rations, C-rats, Charlie rats, or combat rations - canned meals used in military operations
CONCERTINA WIRE - coiled barbed wire with razor type ends
DAPSONE – a small pill taken periodically by U.S. troops, ostensibly to prevent malaria but actually meant to prevent leprosy
DMZ - demilitarized zone
DONUT DOLLY - a female American Red Cross volunteer
DUSTOFF - nickname for a medical evacuation helicopter or mission
E & E - escape and evasion
ELEPHANT GRASS - tall, sharp-edged grass found in the highlands of Vietnam
EM - enlisted man
ETS – estimated time of separation from military service
FATIGUES – standard combat uniform
FIGHTING HOLE - foxhole with sandbag protection and sometimes an elevated roof of sheet metal, reinforced with sand bags. Sized for one or two troops, fighting holes might be dispersed around a company or battery area for defensive use during a ground attack
FIRECRACKER - artillery round incorporating many small bomblets which are ejected over a target area and explode in "bouncing-betty" fashion -- almost simultaneously; name comes from the fast popping sound (best heard at a distance)
FIREBASE – temporary artillery encampment used for fire support of forward ground operations
FIREFIGHT - exchange of small arms fire between opposing units
FLAK JACKET – heavy fiberglass-filled vest worn for protection from shrapnel
FLARE – illumination projectile, hand-fired or shot from artillery, mortars, or air
FORWARD OBSERVER – a person attached to a field unit to coordinate the placement of direct or indirect fire from ground, air, and naval forces
FRAG – fragmentation grenade
FRAGGING - assassination of an officer by his own troops, usually by means of a grenade
FREEDOM BIRD - any aircraft carrying soldiers back to the "world" (the U.S.A.)
FRIENDLIES - U.S. troops, allies, or anyone not on the other side
FRIENDLY FIRE - euphemism used during the war in Vietnam to describe air, artillery, or small-arms fire from American forces mistakenly directed at American positions
GOOK – derogatory term for an Asian. Derived from a Korean slang for “person”
GREEN-EYE - starlight scope; light amplifying telescope, used to see at night
GRUNT - popular nickname for an infantryman in Vietnam; supposedly derived from the sound a soldier made from lifting up his rucksack
SW – gunshot wound
HAMLET – a small rural village
HANOI HILTON - nickname American prisoners of war used to describe the Hoa Loa Prison in Hanoi
HOOTCH - house, living quarters or a native hut
HUMP – grunt term meaning to march or walk carrying a rucksack in the field
I CORPS – the northernmost military region in South Vietnam
II Corps – the Central Highlands military region in South Vietnam
III Corps – the densely populated, fertile military region between Saigon and the Central Highlands
IV Corps – the marshy Mekong Delta southernmost military region in South Vietnam
IMMERSION FOOT – condition resulting from feet being submerged in water for a prolonged period of time, causing cracking and bleeding
IN COUNTRY - Vietnam
IRREGULARS - armed individuals and groups not members of the regular armed forces, police, or other internal security forces
JAG - Judge Advocate General. The legal department of the Armed Services
KIA - Killed In Action
KIT CARSON SCOUT – former Viet Cong who act as guides for U.S. military units
KLICK, K - short for kilometer (0.62 miles)
LBJ - Long Binh Jail, a military stockade in Long Binh
LEATHERNECK - term for a Marine (Marines wore leather neckbands from 1798-1880 for protection of the neck during sword combat)
LIFER - career soldier
LIGHT UP - to fire on the enemy
LIMA LIMA - land line. Refers to telephone communications between two points on the ground
LITTERS – stretchers to carry wounded
LOACH – a light observation helicopter (LOH) used to draw enemy fire so that cobras can come and make the kill
LP – Listening Post. Usually a four man position set up at night around the perimeter away from the main body of troopers
LRRP – Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol. An elite team usually composed of five to seven men who go deep into the jungle to observe enemy activity without initiating contact
LT – lieutenant
LURPS – dehydrated food packages that replace c-rations
LZ - landing zone. Usually a small clearing secured temporarily for the landing of resupply helicopters. Some became more permanent and eventually became base camps of fire support bases
M-14 – a 7.62mm caliber rifle that fired semi and full automatic. Used in the early portion of the Vietnam War
M-16 – the standard military rifle used in Vietnam from 1966 on
M-60 – the standard lightweight machine gun
M-79 – hand-held grenade launcher
MAD MINUTE - concentrated fire of all weapons for a brief period of time at maximum rate
MARS – Military Affiliate Radio Station. Used by soldiers to call home via Signal Corps and ham radio equipment
MASH – Mobile Army Surgical Hospital
MEDIVAC – medical evacuation from the field via helicopter
M.I.A. - Missing In Action
MONTAGNARD – a French term for several tribes of mountain people inhabitation the hills and mountains of central and northern Vietnam
MORTAR – consisting of three parts; a steel tube, base plate, and a tri-pod. A round is dropped in the tube striking a firing pin, causing the projectile to leave the tube at a high angle
MOS – military occupational specialty
MP – military police
MPC - military payment currency. The script soldiers were paid in
MULE – a small motorized platform often used for transporting supplies and personnel
NAPALM – a jellied petroleum substance which burns fiercely and used against enemy personnel
NUMBER ONE - good
NUMBER TEN – bad
P-38 – a tiny collapsible can opener
PLATOON - approximately 45 men belonging to a company. Commanded by a lieutenant, a platoon is an organizational unit composed of two or more squads
PONCHO LINER – a nylon insert to the military rain poncho, used as a blanket
POP SMOKE – to ignite a smoke grenade to signal an aircraft
POW - Prisoner of War
PRC-25 – Portable Radio Communications, Model 25. A back-packed FM receiver-transmitter used for short distance communications. The range of the radio was 5-10 kilometers, depending on the weather
PTSD - post-traumatic stress disorder
PUCKER FACTOR - assessment of the "fear factor", the difficulty or risk involved in an upcoming mission
PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON – an AC-47 propeller-driven aircraft with three miniguns capable of firing 6,000 rounds per minute per gun for a total of 18,000 per minute
PUNJI STAKES – sharpened bamboo stakes used in a primitive, but useful pit trap
QUONSET HUT - a prefabricated structure of corrugated galvanized iron used, along with sandbags, to house soldiers on an LZ
QUAD-50s – a four-barreled assembly of .50 caliber machine guns
RECON - reconnaissance
RED LZ - landing zone under hostile fire
ROCK 'N' ROLL - to put an M16-A1 rifle on full automatic fire
R & R - rest-and-recreation vacation taken during a one-year duty tour in Vietnam. Out-of-country R & R might be in Bangkok, Hawaii, Tokyo, Australia, Hong Kong, Manila, Penang, Taipei, Kuala Lampur, or Singapore. In-country R & R locations were at Vung Tau or China Beach
ROK – soldier form the Republic of Korea
RUCKSACK – a metal-framed backpack used by the infantry to carry supplies
RVN - Republic of Vietnam (South Vietnam)
SAPPERS - North Vietnamese Army or Vietcong demolition commandos
SAR - search and rescue
SEARCH AND CLEAR - offensive military operations to sweep through areas to locate and attack the enemy
SEARCH AND DESTROY - offensive operations designed to find and destroy enemy forces rather than establish permanent government control; also, called "Zippo missions"
SHAKE 'N' BAKE - officer straight out of OCS (Officer Candidate School) without any combat experience
SHORT, SHORT-TIME, SHORT-TIMER - individual with little time remaining in Vietnam
SKATE - goof off
SKS – Simonov 7.62mm semi-automatic carbine
SLEEPER - an undercover agent or a mole
SLICK – a UH-1 helicopter used for transporting troops in tactical air assault operations
SMOKE GRENADE – a grenade that released brightly colored smoke. Used for signaling choppers. Yellow was a safe LZ and red was a hot LZ
SORTIE - one aircraft making one takeoff and landing to conduct the mission for which it was scheduled
SPIDER HOLE – a camouflaged enemy foxhole
SPOOKY – an AC-47 propeller-driven aircraft with three miniguns
STAND-DOWN - period of rest and refitting in which all operational activity, except for security, is stopped
STARLIGHT SCOPE – an infrared night scope to intensify images at night by using reflected light from the moon, stars, or any other source of light
STEEL POT – the standard military issue helmet
TET – the Buddhist lunar New Year, Buddha’s birthday
TRACER – a round of ammunition chemically treated to glow so that its flight can be followed
TRIAGE – the procedure for deciding the order in which to treat casualties
TRIP FLARE – a ground flare triggered by a trip wire used to notify the approach of the enemy
UH-1H – a Huey helicopter
VC, CONG - Vietcong
VIETCONG - Communist forces fighting the South Vietnamese government
VIETMINH - Viet Nam Doc Lap Dong Minh Hoi, the Vietnamese Independence League
WHITE PHOSPHORUS – an explosive round from artillery, mortars, rockets, or grenades. Also a type of aerial bomb. When the rounds exploded, a huge puff of white smoke would appear from the burning phosphorus
WIA - Wounded In Action
WP – white phosphorus
(THE) WORLD - United States
XO – Executive Officer
ZIPPO - flamethrower; also the brand name of a popular cigarette lighter
ZIPPO MISSION - search and destroy mission
ZULU - casualty report, also the phonetic pronunciation of the letter "Z".