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GLOSSARY OF TERMS AND ACRONYMS
It is important for readers
and students to build up the knowledge of terms, abbreviations, acronyms and
slang used by veterans and those who write about the Vietnam War and the Viet
Nam experience. Some of the slang has been introduce to civilian use by returning
veterans but much of it is special to the period and the people who where
there. The reader is advised that this glossary contains obscene language.
A1
Vintage WWII propeller driven aircraft that was the workhorse of air
support for ground troops in Southeast Asia. It was configured in a variety
of systems from the A1A to A1G. It could carry a tremendous payload and linger
over a target far longer than the jet supporting aircraft. (see Skyraider)
AAA
Anti Aircraft Artillery also “Triple A.” The FWF in South Viet Nam
had little to worry regarding enemy air attacks but the VC and the NVA employed
everything the could to prevent helicopters and fix-winged aircraft from operating
against them, from the bolt-action M91 Mosin-Nagant rifle to SA-7 shoulder-fired
heat-seeking missiles.
ABF Attack by fire: to place direct of indirect fire on
a given target
ACAV Armored Cavalry Assault Vehicle: The M113 and M114 armored
troop carrier
ACofS Assistant Chief of Staff
AFVN Armed Forces Vietnam Network
AFRTS
Armed Forces Radio and Television Services: The unit that provided
radio and television services in-country.
AG Adjutant General
Agent Orange A defoliant/herbicide containing trace amounts of toxic contaminants called dioxins. It derived its name from the Orange band on the 55-gallon drums in which it was stored. A one-to-one mixture of n-butyl esters of 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4D) and 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T). It was used against broad-leave vegetation. It contained 1.77 to 40 ppm of dioxins (TCDD) amounts. Lesser known but still employed defoliants and their dioxin contents were:
Agent Blue 32.8 to 45 ppm Narrow Leaf
Agent Pink 65.6 ppm Any vegetation
Agent White 65.6 ppm Broad leaf
Agent Silver 1 to 70 ppm Fungicide
AHC Assault Helicopter Company
AID Agency for International Development
Aid pouch a
web pouch carried on the load-bearing gear that contained a sterile gauze
bandage for use by the individual soldier when injured or wounded.
Aid Bag
Waterproof triple-tiered bag used by the combat medics to carry bandages,
medical supplies and instruments.
Air Burst
Munitions that, through a time or barometric fuze explodes before hitting
the ground.
Aid Kit
a small bag, bigger than a pouch but smaller than a bag for carrying
necessary survival medical items e.g. Merthiolate, morphine syrette, etc.
AIK Assistance In Kind – to mean money
or goods
Aircraft Anything that flies – fixed or rotary-wing
Air America CIA proprietary airline
used throughout Southeast Asia for clandestine operations
Airburst
Munitions using a timer or barometric pressure device to cause it to
explode at a certain height. (used for AAA and artillery against dug-in personnel.
Airborne (ABN) Classification of an individual or unit that is required to be on “jump status.” A paratrooper. Jump qualified personnel. Personnel and equipment dropped by parachute. 2. Flying above the surface of the earth
Airmobile
Personnel and equipment inserted by helicopter: designation of a unit
whose primary mode of transporting personnel and equipment is with helicopters.
AIT Advanced Individual Training: the training following Basic Training that awards each soldier his/her Military Occupational Specialty (MOS)
AK-47 Automat Kalashnikov 1947: the 7.62x39mm Soviet assault rifle. It weighs 11.5 pounds and carries a 30-round steel magazine. The weapon was copied from the Germans’ prototype MP-44 assault rifle seized by the Soviets at the end of WWII. The Chicom copy was designated Type 56 assault rifle and had a permanent triangular bayonet pinned to a swivel on the underside of the barrel.
ALC
Area Logistic Command
ALCE
Airlift Control Element – regional Tactical Airlift Command
Alpha Bravo
Phonetic for Ambush
All American
82nd Airborne Division
All Hands
Everybody (Navy/Marine)
Ambush a
surprise attack by an armed group on another for the purpose of defeating
the ambushed. The principal tactic used by guerrillas to attain superiority
over a larger enemy. Stealth and surprise are paramount for its success.
AMERICAL
23RD Infantry Division
Angry Ten slang
for the AN/GRE-10 AM radio, a WWII vintage long range radio used extensively
by the Special Forces for contacting higher headquarter from areas of operations
in Morse Code.
Ankle biter
the enemy’s answer to the steel boot inserts to prevent penetration
of the punji stake through the bottom of a boot. The bamboo or steel barbs
where driven into a board with a hinge, placed in a pit and camouflaged using
the same tactics as a regular punji booby-trap. When an unwary soldier stepped
into the trap his weight would press down on the middle of the hinged board
making the two sides come together violently piercing the ankle of the victim.
AN/TPQ-10
Ground-based aircraft radar guidance system
ANZAC
Australia-New Zealand Assistance Command
AO Area of Operation
AP Armor Piercing
APC Armored Personnel Carrier or Accelerated
Pacification Campaign
ARA Aerial Rocket Artillery: helicopter mounted rockets
AR-15 Lightweight
assault rifle in 5.56mm (.203 caliber) designed by Eugene Stoner and first
built by Armalite Co. in 1956, later manufactured by Colt Industries it developed
into the XM16E1, then the standard issue M16A1 battle rifle.
Arc Light B-52 Bombing mission
ARCOM Army Commendation
Medal:
Armed Dau Trang armed communist revolutionary cadre team first
developed by Ho Chi Minh and Vo Nguyen Giap to initiate first phase guerrilla
warfare and subvert local authority. These organizations later coalesced into
the Viet Minh in 1945 and where reactivated in South Viet Nam in 1954.
ARTY Artillery
As you were!
Correction or resume what you are doing.
ASA Army Security
Agency
ASAP As Soon As
Possible
ASH Assault
Support Helicopter
Ash & Trash term similar to “milk
run” or “pigs & rice,” used by a/c crews to describe non-combat sorties.
It didn’t mean you weren’t going to get shot at, just that you were not flying
into combat – usually into a base camp.
Asian Viper A poisonous pit viper,
it grows to 5 feet in length and is found just about everywhere in Viet Nam.
It is sluggish in movement but needs little or no provocation to attack. The
bite is very painful and results in bleeding, swelling and discoloration lasting
several days. In severe cases, there is intense thirst, nausea, projectile
vomiting, general hemorrhage; respiratory failure; death.
ASP Ammunition
Supply Point
ASPB Assault Support
Patrol Boat
ASRT Air Support
Radar Team
ATC Air Traffic
Controller
A Team The basic 12-man
Special Forces unit
ATSB Advanced
Tactical Support Base
Article 15 a summary disciplinary judgment applied to a soldier by his commander. It is an action less severe than a court martial; usually company punishment (latrine detail, etc.) but could go as high as monetary fines and confinement in the stockade. Its name is derived from its number in the UCMJ.
Article 31 Parallels the “Miranda” rights in the military service and, just as in civilian arrests, it must be read to the detainee before any questions are asked.
Article 32 Investigation Military
investigation to determine if there is probable cause to bring charges against
a member of the armed forces
ARVN Army of the Republic of Viet Nam
Atropine Syrette A
single, self-contained dose of nerve gas antitoxin. The needle is sharp enough
to pierce through a soldier’s protective gear and into the thigh muscle.
AW
Automatic Weapon – any weapon which is fed from the action of gasses
or recoil and automatically feeds the next cartridge into the chamber ready
to fire using one pull of the trigger.
AWOL Absent Without Authorized Leave: being absent from your place of duty without permission
Azimuth A compass bearing – Lensatic compasses are marked with 3600 (degrees) in increments of 1 degree beginning with North which is represented by 0 degrees clockwise and 360 degrees counter-clockwise. Thus 900 represents due East, 1800 due South, and 1700 due West.
B = Bravo
B-40 See RPG
B-52 Stratofortress Heavy strategic
bomber capable of carrying large loads of nuclear, conventional (dumb) or
radar-guided bombs.
Bamboo Vietnamese
Tre: giant grass with jointed, hollow stems, yellow-green or nearly
black; some striped with white or yellow. This plant can grow 40-50 feet and
up to 6 inches in diameter.
Banana Clip An
elongated 30-round magazine – the label was originally used for the extended
magazine issued for the .30 caliber M2 carbine – it has now come to mean any
extended magazine.
Bandoleer a
cloth, web or leather carrier for extra ammunition or extra loaded magazines
that a combatant carries slung over one shoulder. M16A1 ammunition came inserted
in bandoleers for issue to combat troops both in 10-round stripper clips or
previously loaded magazines.
BAR
Browning automatic rifle – designed by Robert Browning in 1914 it saw
limited service during WWI. Issued to the ARVN and self-defense forces in
South Viet Nam. With the bipod and steel shoulder brace, it weighed 18 pounds,
and each magazine carrying 20 .30-06 caliber rounds weighed 2.2 pounds. The
web gear made especially for this weapon held twelve 20-round magazines.
Base Camp Operational
field headquarters for a military unit, usually located inside that unit’s
Area of Operation. It normally housed the unit’s support elements.
Battalion (Bn.) Organization
within the Army/Marine Corps usually comprised of 3 line (combat) companies,
1 headquarters company + support element commanded by a Lieutenant Colonel
(0-5). An Army infantry battalion TO&E calls for approximately 900 people,
an artillery battalion about 500.
Bazooka Generic
WWII name applied to any of a series of individual rocket launchers and included
the WWII M20, 3.5” rocket launcher, the disposable M72, 66mm LAW and the Soviet
family of RPGs.
BC Body Count: the toll of enemy killed
in a given operation
BCD Bad Conduct Discharge
BDA Bomb Damage Assessment (after an Arc Light mission)
Beaver
The U-6A a single engine fixed wing medium utility aircraft flown by
US Army pilots
Beehive An
artillery round filled with hundreds of 2” stamped metal darts called fleshettes
used for direct fire defense against an assaulting enemy too close for indirect
fire.
Belay
Stop, quit (Navy and Marines)
Bennies Special
comfort items not found in the normal military supply chain e.g. coca-cola,
beer, watermelons, ice cream, etc.
BGen
Brigadier General [one star] (US Army, Marines, Air Force)
Billet
Assignment or job (Navy/Marines/) Place of residence (Army/Air Force)
Big nose(s) a
derogatory term used by Asians to describe occidentals, particularly Americans.
Big Red One
1st Infantry Division
Big Shotgun
a 106mm recoilless rifle using antipersonnel canister rounds
Bingo
flyer’s term for that point in the flight where the aircraft has only
enough fuel remaining to return to base.
Bipod
A two-legged support stand either affixed to or attached to the front
of the barrel of small arms: BAR, M14, M16A1, M60s, etc.
Bird (a) (the) an
aircraft, any aircraft
Bird Dog The
0-1 (USAF) or L-19 (Army) single engine fixed wing aircraft seating two people
used for reconnaissance and forward air control.
Blackbird C-130
fitted out for Special Operations – particularly the Fulton Recovery
System used
for air-to-ground extraction.
Black Box Special
electronic warfare equipment used in connection with ground sensors to detect
enemy movements on the Ho Chi Minh trail
Blackhorse 1.
Support base northeast of Saigon. 2. One of the names used for coding numbers
to be transmitted on the radio
Black Panthers 2/47th
Mechanize Infantry Battalion of the 9th Infantry Division also:
a radical African-American group organized in the early 1960s
Bladder Bag 1-gallon
collapsible canteen.
Blasting Cap a
small highly sensitive heat or electrically initiated device causing an explosion
that activates a larger, less sensitive explosive
Blivet
A collapsible hard rubber container for carrying POL – also used to
describe an article or equipment that did not fit back into the container
it came in “two pounds of shit in a one-pound bag”
Blouse
to tuck the pants into your boots also a fatigue shirt in the
Navy or Marines
Blousing Bands
Elastic bands used to secure fatigue or utility trousers
Blues
Dress uniform
Blue line
a river on a map
Body Bag a
hard plastic bag issued by the Quartermaster Corps Graves Registration to
transport the remains of the dead.
BOHICA!
Bend Over, Here it Comes, Again!
Boom-Boom
sexual intercourse – slang
Boondocks (Boonies) Rugged
isolated backcountry or jungle terrain
Boonie Rat
a field soldier, a grunt, an infantryman
BOQ
Batchelor Officer’s Quarters
Bouncing Betty an
anti-personnel mine designed to explode after one takes his foot off
the mine. It then detonates a propellant charge that sent the mine approximately
3 feet into the air, exploding at the victim’s waist level causing severe
injuries or death.
Brass
Officers
Break squelch used
when radio silence is in effect, to acknowledge a communication –the push-to-talk
switch is pressed momentarily causing a clicking/hissing sound on the receiving
speaker.
Brig
Jail (Navy and Marines)
Bring Smoke
to direct all available firepower at a given enemy position
Broken Arrow code
word used by artillery forward observers to alert all elements monitoring
their radio that a unit was in danger of being overrun by the enemy – It gave
priority of all artillery and air assets to that unit.
Bronco
0V-10 Twin Engine Turboprop Aircraft used for reconnaissance and Forward
Air Control. Also called “Push me – pull me” because of its twin propellers.
Browning Hi-Power Belgium manufactured
Model 35, 9mm semiautomatic pistol used by MAC-SOG reconnaissance teams. It
was primarily preferred because it was fed with a 15-round magazine.
BSZ Border Surveillance Zone – Area contiguous to RVN borders
BUFF B-52 Bomber (Big Ugly Friendly F* * ker)
Bug Juice
Mosquito repellent
Bulkhead
Wall (Navy and Marine)
Bushmaster
highly skilled in jungle operations
Butter bar
Second (2nd) Lieutenant
Buy (bought)
the farm to die or be killed
By-the-numbers
In proper sequence
BX Base Exchange (sundries store in
a military base)
C-3
Composition–3: the forerunner of C-4 (see below). While also stable
and malleable, it was saturated with nitro-glycerin and if the handler did
not use gloves it stained the hands yellow and a severe headache ensued. Old
demolitionist knew to place a small amount under the tongue before handling
the explosive to prevent the migraine. It was still in use during the late
1950s and early 60s by the ARVN.
C-4
Composition–4: a very powerful plastic explosive compound that is highly
stable, lightweight, and malleable. It can only be exploded using detonation
cord or blasting caps. Since it burns so hot, field soldiers used a 1” ball
to heat up C-rations or water when Heat tablets where not available.
C’s (C-Rats) C-Rations
– canned combat meals for field use – three meals constituted one ration.
Shipped 12 meals to a box, each meal contained a “main course” a can of crackers
and peanut butter or pound cake, and a fruit or nut-roll or the ever-popular
fruitcake. A plastic packet supplied: a matchbook; a spoon (some new one came
with a “spork”; a roll of toilet paper (enough for one sitting); a pack of
5 cigarettes; powered cocoa, instant coffee, sugar and powered cream. The
chocolate ring that came with the crackers was laced with vitamin A, which
gave it a strange taste. See Ham and Motherf * * * * * rs.
CA Civic Action or Civil Affairs
Cannon Cocker
Artilleryman
Cargomaster
The C-133 aircraft in its many configurations
Carry-coat Buoyant
Ammunition carriers designed as jackets for use in operations by the SEALs.
There were three designs: Type I – Rifleman; Type II – Grenadier; and, Type
III – Radioman, each with special pockets to hold ammunition and field items,
e.g. compass, flashlight, etc.
Cammies Camouflaged
jungle uniforms – just about everybody had their own pattern in Viet Nam
Cane Pressure Mine Chicom manufactured
mine used by the VC/NVA that started to appear hung on trees at likely helicopter
landing zones in the Central Highlands of South Viet Nam around 1968. The
mine was activated by a detonator set off by downward air pressure generated
by a landing helicopter
Canteen issued
water jug with a 1qt. capacity. Originally made of aluminum – later issue
where made of hard plastic that initially had a message embossed on the side
that said, “Do not hold over a fire to heat water. Some people still did.
Canteen Cup
issued with the canteen – continued to be made of light weight aluminum
Canteen Cover
issued to carry the canteen and cup.
Capt. (Cpt.) Captain
(US Army/Marines/Air Force: company grade officer) (US Navy/Coast Guard (Field
Grade officer equivalent to Colonel)
Carry On!
Resume what you were doing – see “As you were.”
Car-15 Shortened version
of the M16A1 rifle. Also misnamed “Colt Commando.” The original military designation
was XM177E2.
CARE Co-operative for American Relief
Everywhere. The worldwide Catholic relief organization
Caribou (‘boos) DeHavilland
twin-engine cargo airplane initially assigned to the US Army as the CV-2 and
later (1966) turned over to the US Air Force (designated C-7A)
CAS
Close air support – aircraft flying in support of ground troops in
contact
Casualty Staging Area a dispensary,
clinic, mobile hospital or temporary area where the wounded are taken to be
given first aid, stabilized (triaged) and sent forward to the more extensive
medical care.
CBU
Cluster Bomb Units – smaller high explosive bombs delivered in a large
container that opened above enemy troops or armor and exploded over a wide
area
C&C Command and Control
CCC Command and Control Central (MACV-SOG)
CCN Command and Control North (MACV-SOG)
CCS Command and Control South (MACV-SOG)
C-Day
Conversion day – the date MPCs where exchanged for a new version (making
the old version obsolete. See MPC
CDC
Container Delivery System: a method of air delivery of pre-packaged
supplies for troops in the field. Each container had critical items e.g.,
ammunition, water, medical supplies, radio batteries or radios, etc. and each
classification was numbered so all the unit in the field had to request was
the number, quantity and give the location of the drop zone.
CDEC Combined
Document Exploitation Center: a detachment under the CICV – Received all
daily document seizures from field units, by 1969 the CMIC could scan a set
of captured documents, identify those important to a particular Allied unit,
translate it when necessary and have it back to the field unit within 24-36
hours.
CESE Civil Engineering Support Equipment
CG Commanding General
Check it out!
Look at that!
CH-46 Boeing Sea Knight medium cargo helicopter the workhorse
for the Marines
CH-53 Sikorsky Sea Stallion heavy cargo helicopter
Chest Pouch pouches
carried by the VC/NVA to house ammunition and accoutrements. The one for the
AK-47 housed three 30-round magazines and cleaning gear. The one for the SKS
allowed the wearer to carry 10 rounds of ammunition in 10-round stripper clips.
CHICOM
Chinese Communist
Chicken Plate early
body armor discarded by grunts and used to sit on by mechanized troops and
pilots to protect themselves from rounds fired up into their crafts.
Chinook
CH-47 Heavy Cargo Helicopter: One
of these was equipped with a 20 mm cannon on each side and an automatic grenade
launcher under the nose. It destroyed itself when one of the pins holding
one of the 20 mm cannons came off causing the gun to point straight up. Before
the gunner could stop firing the bullets had destroyed the front propeller
blades.
Cherry new to the unit: no experience in combat. See FNG
Cherry jump first
parachute jump with one’s assigned airborne unit after completing jump school
Choke
Peanut Butter
Chow Food (Chinese)
Chow Hall
Dining room – mess hall
CIA Central Intelligence Agency
CIB
Combat Infantryman’s Badge – awarded to infantrymen for sustained combat
service [normally not less than six months.]
CICV Combined Intelligence Center, Viet Nam
CIDG Civilian Irregular Defense Group
CINCPAC
Commander in Chief, Pacific
CINCSAC
Commander in Chief, Strategic Air Command
Clacker (also Klacker) a hand-operated
spring-loaded firing device which when pressed produced an electrical charge
to detonate the Claymore Mine or other electrically detonated devices. “One
Claymore Mine came in every box of clackers.”
Claymore M18A1:
a slightly curved antipersonnel mine – contains 700 double-0 size pellets
in front of one pound of C-4 that, when detonated, has a forward lethal zone
of 50 meters in an arc of 60 degrees.
CLC Central Logistics Command
Clip See mag. or magazine
Cluster Bomb One-pound
baseball-sized bomblets with varying configurations some were time delayed,
some high explosive, some with thermite for burning.
CMB
Combat Medical Badge – equivalent to CIB. Presented to medical personnel
participating in ground combat
CMD
Capital Military District – the security area around Saigon
CMEC
Combined Materiel Exploitation Center – all new enemy weapons and equipment
were turned over to this unit for assessment of its efficiency and utility
on the battlefield. New weapons models, variations or devices were forwarded
to the Department of Defense for further testing and evaluation.
CMIC
Combined Military Intelligence Center
CN
Tear gas
C.O.
1. Commanding Officer. 2. C.O. Conscientious Objector: Classification
used by the draft board to classify those who, according to their religious
believes, would not serve in the armed forces.
Cobra (Asiatic) a
reptile native to both North and South Viet Nam, it can grow to 7’ in length.
Usually lives in holes between the roots of large trees. Not aggressive and
will avoid humans. Most active at night, it is sometimes found on trails and
road getting warm. Venom is highly toxic; a nerve poison which can be fatal
in 2 to 24 hours depending on amount injected and victim’s state of health.
Code
Any method of transposition or substitution used to deny the enemy
information: a simple numbers substitution code is to find any 10-digit word
that does not repeat any letter e.g. blackhorse or champion, substitute the
numerals 1-0 for the letters and transmit the letters. The receiving station
must know what word you are using. See SOI
COFRAM
Controlled Fragmentation Munitions
Col.
Colonel
Collins Single Sideband
Radio Model 32S-3 used extensively by Special Forces communications personnel.
It could transmit in Morse code or voice and was usually packed in a civilian-style
set of suitcases.
Colors The flag – national colors – the stars and stripes
Colt Commando
First version of the shortened M16 rifle for use by Special Forces
(see CAR-15.)
Combat Pay Additional pay awarded
to In-country servicemen and women. It ranged from $50 to $65.00 depending
on rank
Company A
military unit of approximately 250 officers and enlisted men commanded by
a Captain (0-3) consisting of three or more platoons. In the artillery a like
organization is called a battery, in the cavalry it is called a troop.
Combat jump a
jump made into a hostile area or for the purpose of engaging the enemy. Only
five (5) officially recognized combat jump where made in South
Viet Nam during the Vietnam War.
173rd
Abn Bde 2/27/67 C-130 845 jumpers
War Zone C III CTZ
5th
SFG: 4/2/67 C-123
39/314 “ Bunard III CTZ
5th
SFG: 5/13/67 C-130
20/374 “ Nui Gai
IV CTZ
5th
SFG 9/5/67 C-130
25/355 “ Bu Prang
II CTZ
5th
SFG 11/17/68 C-130
25/495 “ 7 Mts. Region
IV CTZ
Elements of
or attached to the 173rd where:
HHC 173rd Abn Bde (minus)
2nd Bn, 503rd Inf. (Airborne)
Battery A, 3rd Bn, 319th
Arty
Figures for
jumpers are approximate. Figures to the right of the slash represent CIDG
Mike Force; figures to the left represent USASF or Pathfinder personnel. Participants
are authorized to wear a small bronze star on their jump wings.
Comics/Comic book Map
(also, funny papers)
COMINT
communications intelligence
COMUSMACV
Commander, United States Military Assistance Command, Vietnam
Comm.
Communications
Commo Check
Communications Check on the radio
Concertina Wire barbwire
used for defenses and restricting movements. The wire came in rolls dropped
by supply aircraft. It was once estimated that the warring factions in South
Viet Nam had installed enough barbwire In-country to make a three-foot high
fence encircling the planet.
CONARC
Continental Army Command
Contact
engagement (combat) with the enemy – of any size or under any condition
Cook-off a round that is fired spontaneously because excessive firing has heated up the chamber of the weapon
CORDS Civil Operations and Revolutionary Development Support (later Civil Operations and Rural Development Support)’
Corduroy Road a road constructed over swampy or muddy terrain using logs and vegetation
Cork name for the drug Lomotil, used by members of LRRPs, SF and SEAL teams causing constipation and the need to defecate while operations.
Corps 1. Military unit comprising several divisions and its support elements commanded by a Lieutenant General (0-9.) 2. The US Marine Corps 3. In Viet Nam the designation of each military region: I Corps (Northern) II Corps (Central Highland) III Corps (Middle) IV Corps (South) 4. Term used to describe specialized military services: Medical Corps; Finance Corps; Signal Corps; Transportation Corps.
COSVN Central Office for South Vietnam:
The politico-military leadership of the southern opposition that ostensibly
was made up of both communist and anti-communist nationalist guerrillas. It
was not a place. It was an activity.
Counter Mortar Radar the AN/MPQ-4 radar set. This radar could pick
up the in-coming round fired from an enemy mortar, artillery tube or rocket
launcher and, almost instantly compute backwards to the firing location. This
information was relayed to the Counter Mortar Battery, a unit prepared to
immediately execute a fire mission on the given coordinates.
Cover 1. Anything that will protect from
hostile action: It applies to anything that can offer protection from direct
or indirect fire. 2. Navy/Marine for
hat
Coxswain the
person, generally a Boastwain’s Mate, in charge of steering and/or directing
the crew of a boat. A boat is defined as any craft smaller than a ship.
CP Command Post
CPDC Central Pacification and Development Council
C.Q.
Charge of Quarters: The NCO left in charge of a headquarters after
it shuts down operations for the day.
Cracker Box a
field ambulance
Crew Chief Enlisted
man in charge of the aircraft: in helicopters (s)he is in charge of maintenance.
In fixed-wing a/c (s)he may be the loadmaster.
CRIMP Consolidated Republic of Viet Nam Armed Forces Improvement & Modernization Program
CRIP Civilian Reconnaissance Intelligence Platoon
Crosscheck used
before going out of a friendly perimeter to conduct operations to insure no
one is carrying that makes noise, not camouflaged, lights up, etc.
Crusader
F-8 jet aircraft used by the US Navy – mainly employed as reconnaissance
CS Teargas
CSCC Combat Support Coordinating Center
CSP
Combat Security Police – Air Force “infantry” equipped and trained
to act as a reaction force for airfield protection. These units where created
as a result of the communist 1968 Tet Offensive in South Viet Nam.
CTC Central Training Command
CTZ Corps Tactical Zone
Cutting and
slashing the time spent
opening a trail through elephant grass and bamboo.
CYA Cover Your Ass: anything done to make sure you
don’t take the blame.
Cyclo
three wheeled taxi holding two or three people and driven by a person
peddling in back. A very common form of transportation used in Southeast Asia.
D = Delta
DA Department of the Army
DAO Defense Attaché Office
Daisy Chain The
linking of two or more antipersonnel mine (Claymore) by detonating cord to
explode simultaneously.
Daisy Cutter a
10-15,000 pound high explosive bomb that will clear a ground area of approximately
300 meters when detonated. It will create an “instant” landing zone. There
are no bombers in our inventory to haul these behemoths and they are dropped
from a cargo aircraft or a flying crane.
Dapzone
Medication issued to US forces once a week to prevent leprosy
DCO Deputy Commanding Officer
DD Form 4
Enlistment contract with the US Armed Forces
DD Form 214 Formal
record of military service – provided at discharge or release from active
duty – lists time of active service, promotions, highest rank held while active,
schools attended and awards and decorations received.
DD Form 1049
Military Personnel
Transfer Request Form
Dead Zone/Space
area(s) not covered by effective or interlocking weapons fire.
De Oppresso
Liber “To Free the Oppressed” US
Army Special Forces Motto
Deck Floor (Navy/Marine)
Decompression Time
spent between leaving the battle area and being returned to the United States.
Not enough time was spent in this very needed process (recommended time and
again by the military psychologist). Most combat troops went directly from
the field to the “States” within one or two days without transition that many
times caused adjustment problems for the individual.
Defoliant
A chemical which when sprayed or dusted on living vegetation will cause
it to die – see Agent Orange.
Delta Dagger
F-102 jet fighter – most of these were based in Thailand
Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) a designated
section of ground in which neither side is to position combat or combat support
troops. Viet Nam: the 2-mile wide area north of the 17th Parallel
dividing North and South. Violated by the North Vietnamese from day one of
the signing of the partition agreement in 1954 prohibiting such acts.
DEROS Date Eligible for Rotation from Overseas
– The date one’s Viet Nam tour was due to terminate
Desertion (to desert) act of leaving a military unit or assigned post
or failure to report in to your newly assigned unit with the express intention
of not returning (as opposed to AWOL.)
Detonation (Det.) Cord a ¼ inch hollow cord filled with the high-explosive
PETN and used to link several explosive charges of anti-personnel mines to
explode together. See Daisy Chain.
DIA Defense
Intelligence Agency
Diaper The (supposedly)
bulletproof device worn (like a diaper) by pilots and aircraft crews to protect
the crotch area.
Diddy bag a small bag for personal
hygiene items
DIOCC District Intelligence and Operations Coordinating Center
Dink Slang used by US soldiers to describe NVA soldiers
Dispensary
A clinic or small medical installation (Army)
DLIC Detachment left in contact. A
unit left behind the main force(s) to stop or slow down a pursuing enemy force
by ambush or direct attack.
DOD Department of Defense
Doing the Job causing
an intentional wound or allowing oneself to be wounded seriously enough to
require medical evacuation from the combat zone.
Dog ‘n Pony
Show Special presentation put on
for visiting brass or dignitaries
Double-time
faster than walking but slower than running
Doughnut Dolly Female
Red Cross Worker – More doughnut dollies served in South Viet Nam than any
other single organization except the Army, civilian or military.
DOW
Died of Wounds – Classification given to anyone evacuated from the
field still alive but was either dead on arrival (DOA) or died in hospital
In-country
DPA Direction Pointing Arrow – a
large wooden arrow-shaped pointer Ä (about 12’X3’)
with evenly spaced cans filled with sand and gasoline nailed to its edges
at intervals of 6” to outline its shape. Used by Special Forces camps to signal
the direction of the enemy attack for supporting night air strikes. The arrow
was balanced on a 55-gallon drum or a log pivot of some type so it could be
swung around.
DRAC Delta Regional Assistance Command
Draft, The,
Selective Service Board: Your
friends and neighbors, who sent you to Viet Nam.
Draft Evader
Your next door neighbor’s son who went to Canada, or
earned a college degree.
Drag
The unit behind the main maneuver elements “bringing up the rear” to
insure rear safety. Also called “the sweepers.”
Drag Bomb
See High Drag
Dragonfly
A-37 jet fighter
Drum
a container of ammunition used to feed an automatic weapon
Dry Fire
drop the hammer or pull the trigger on an empty chamber of a weapon
Dry run Practice
DSA District Senior Advisor
Duffle Bag Large
canvas bag issued to hold all personal gear of a soldier. Called a seabag
by the Navy and Marine Corps.
Duster Tracked 40mm gun carrier (US Army)
Dustoff Medical Evacuation Helicopter, usually a UH-1 or Huey
“Slick.”
ECM Electric
Counter Measures
EC-121 Lockheed Super
Constellation electronics warfare aircraft
E&E Escape and Evasion
EENT Early Evening Nautical Twilight
– the time when the sun is setting and it is not quite night, allowing you
to move with a minimum of noise. The best time to move into an overnight position
and put out listening posts.
Elephant grass Nipa Palm – Vietnamese Khoai-sap:
a plant that grows abundantly in the open areas in Viet Nam usually 7 or 8
feet tall with large leaves each held upright by a fleshy stalk. The leaves
have sharp razor-like teeth around its edge and sudden contact would create
a deep scratch or a rip in clothing.
EM Enlisted Men
EMNT Early Morning Nautical Twilight
– the period just before sunrise and you can make out terrain features and
obstacles sufficiently to move without being seeing from a distance by the
enemy. The best time to move into an attack position or line of departure
(LD)
Encryption/Encrypt The coding of a message or coordinates into letters
and/or numbers rendering it unintelligible to the enemy monitoring friendly
communications.
ENIFF Enemy initiated firefight
Ensign 0-1 in the Navy – equivalent to 2nd Lieutenant
Entrenching
Tool
folding field shovel issued as part of the field gear
EOD Explosive Ordnance Disposal (Detachment)
ER Efficiency Report
ETA Estimated Time of Arrival
ETS Estimated Termination of Service – date of release from
active duty
Eye Fuck
Ogle, scrutinize with deliberate care, undress with one’s eyes
Exec. Executive Officer
F-4B McDonnell Phantom jet fighter
FAC Forward Air Control or Controller
Fannie Pack
the short cargo bag connected to the rear of the G. I. web belt and
suspenders.
FARK Forcés Armées Royales Khmères (Royal Khmer Armed Forces)
Fartsack
mattress cover, bed, sleeping bag
Fast Movers Any
jet aircraft called in by the forward air controller (FAC) to bomb, napalm
or strafe the enemy position – also Fast Burners
Fat Albert
Air Force C-5A Galaxy cargo aircraft
Fat City
MACV Headquarters in Saigon, South Viet Nam also called “The Puzzle
Palace,” and “Disneyland East”
Fatigues
Standard issue military field uniform: In Viet Nam it was initially
olive drab but later changed to camouflage.
FBIS Foreign Broadcast Information Services
FFORCEV
Field Force, Vietnam
Field Expedient the
construction or adaptation of any item using available tools and material,
e.g. a “field expedient antenna” was a roll of communications wire, thrown
over a tree branch and connected to the radio to extend the radios transmission
and reception range; a hooch built of vegetation and mud is a field expedient
shelter.
Field of Fire
the area to the front of a given weapon position which that weapon
can cover effectively
Field Strip
To disassemble, take apart – as in field stripping a cigarette butt
FIGMO F * * k It, I Got My Orders! (to leave Viet Nam)
Fighting Hole a
hole, usually dug for defensive purposes that offers cover to the soldier.
It may be expanded to include trench communications with other holes and overhead
cover against enemy artillery, mortar or rocket fire. WWII = foxhole.
Fighting range That
area in which you or the enemy are under the effective range of each other’s
small arms and can bring effective fire to bear. In the jungles of Viet Nam
this could from 5-30 feet, depending on the density of the vegetation. In
the highland forest it could be 15-75 meters and in the open paddies of the
Mekong Delta, it could expand to the full effective range of an M-16A1 rifle
- 350 meters
Firecracker An
artillery round that contains many small bomblets that when fired disperses
these in an airburst almost simultaneously.
It acquired its name from the sound heard when it goes off.
Fire Support Base a temporary site from which artillery was positioned
to support ground operations in a given area. Portable Howitzers (usually
105mm) where brought in by helicopter after the area was secured by infantry
troops.
Firefight contact with enemy
troops, large or small where there has been an exchange of small arms fire.
Fire for Effect having gotten the range
and elevation of the target using individual rounds, the observer calls for
all guns to fire on the given target until he calls cease fire.
Fire Mission A specific call for artillery
fire by troops being supported
First Shirt
First Sergeant (Army)
Fire in the
hole!
Generic warning to all present that high explosives are about to be
detonated
FITS F * * k It,
Tomorrow’s Saturday! – GI’s replacement to the civilian TGIF
Flak Jacket / Vest A
vest made to protect the wearer from indirect shrapnel and explosive debris.
It would seldom stop an enemy bullet like the 7.62 X 39 mm fired by the SKS
or AK-47 rifles at fighting range.
Flex Guns
M60C1 Machine guns mounted on hogs and Huey Cobras
Flight Time time
from takeoff to landing or an aircraft – the flying time it takes to reach
a given position from where the aircraft is presently located
Flying Banana H-21
cargo helicopter: the first used to test the airmobile concept in 1961-62
using South Vietnamese troops. Several of these where equipped with flex miniguns
and called “Hot Bananas” They where phased out by the H-34 and later the UH-A
Hueys.
Flying Boxcar C-119
cargo aircraft – aerodynamically speaking, this airplane was not supposed
to fly – but then, neither was the bumblebee.
Flying Telephone Pole Soviet built
SA-2 Surface to air missile used in North Viet Nam
FNG F * * * king New Guy: replacement personnel. See Cherry
FO Forward Observer – the person in
charge of calling for support fires.
FOB Forward Operational Base (Special Forces)
Foogas or Fougasse an unspecified
mixture of gasoline/jet fuel and powered detergent held in a 55-gallon drum
either buried or placed on small pedestals outside the berm but inside the
wire entanglements of a camp and used to defend the perimeter from ground
assault. It contained either a charge of C-4 or an electrically wired mortar
or artillery shell inside which, when set off created a napalm-like effect
covering a large area.
Forty Percent Rule The average decline
in efficiency in accomplishing a complex, impromptu, or unrehearsed mission.
It is computed for every person brought into the “need to know” and given
a specific task crucial to that mission. Therefore, if the mission requires
10 soldiers to accomplish it the first would be assigned 100% probability
the next 60% the next 36% the next 14.4% and so on. Adding all the averages
then dividing by the number of participants in this case ten produced the
final average. In the above example the possibility of success would be 22.0%.
Every rehearsal of the mission increases the probability of success by 50%
Frag
a fragmentation grenade
Fragging
the attempt or actual killing of someone by his own troops – usually
an officer by means of a hand grenade.
Fraternization improper
social contact between enlisted and officer or military and civilian personnel.
Freak or Frec. Slang:
a particular frequency on the radio
Freedom Bird
The aircraft you took to leave Viet Nam
Freedom Fighter US F-5 combat jet aircraft
Free Fire Zone an
area determined to be completely dominated by the enemy and therefore anything
within it was targeted. – No man’s land.
Friendlies
anybody on your side
Friendly Fire Used
to describe artillery or mortar fire gone astray and hitting friendly troops.
The recipients found out quickly that “friendly fire” isn’t!
FSB Fire Support Base
FTA F * * k The Army
FUBAR F * * ked Up Beyond All Repair / Recognition
Fulton Recovery System Method of
extracting up to 4 people from a hostile area where it was impossible to land
either fixed or rotary wing aircraft. A C-130 Blackbird would drop a packet
containing a helium tank, a dirigible-shape balloon, the number of extraction
suits required and a 900 foot rope. The personnel to be extracted donned their
suits and connected a sewn-in hook to one end of the rope. The balloon was
inflated, connected to one other end of the rope and sent aloft. When all
was in readiness, the C-130 would fly in at approximately 165 kph, hook the
line being towed by the balloon. At the moment of extraction the passenger(s)
shot straight up in the air approximately 90 feet and accelerated from 0 to
165 kph in less than one minute. The tether was attached to a powerful winch
at the rear of the C-130 and the person(s) was winched up into the aircraft.
The process can be accomplished by a trained and experienced team in less
than 10 minutes.
Funny Money
Military Payment Certificates
FWMAF Free World Military Assistance Forces
G = Golf
G-1 Administrative/Personnel
section or officer for a Division
G-2 Intelligence section or officer
for a Division (to “G-2” something – to investigate until one got all the
information)
G-3 Operations
section or officer a Division
G-4 Logistics
section or officer for a Division
G-5 Civil
Affairs section or officer for a Division
Galley Kitchen (Navy/Marine)
Gear
Equipment
GCI
ground controlled intercept
GDRS
General Directorate of rear services
Gecko a small lizard (gray to green) tolerated
in homes in Viet Nam because they tend to devour a large quantity of insects.
Also known as “F * * * You Lizards” because of the peculiar sound they make
during the night.
Ghosting (to ghost) an activity designed to keep one from working
hard. In WWII and Korea it was known as “Goldbricking.”
G. I. Can
Garbage can
Gizmo gadget; anything that defies description
Globemaster
II
US C-124 cargo aircraft – also “Old Shakey.”
GOER M-520 8-ton 4X4 vehicle with a material-handling arm
or crane
Gook
Derogatory term used to describe the enemy in Viet Nam (from the Korean
Hon Gook meaning Korean person)
Gourd head, where you put your hat or cover
GP General Purpose
GPES Ground Proximity Extraction System (see LOLEX)
Grab a (your)
hat Leave, get out
Grabass
playing around, a frivolous activity
– organized grabass: sports
Gravel
Pressure detonated explosive device. This explosive was spread around
ground sensor sites to discourage the enemy from picking them up. After they
where dropped, encased in a Freon solution, they dried up and looked like
a small leaf lying on the ground until you stepped on one or kicked it. It
was powerful enough to blow the tire off a vehicle.
GRD
Graves Registration Detachment a unit of the Quartermaster Corps that
handles the procedures for processing deceased military personnel
Grease Gun
WWII vintage M-3 .45 caliber sub-machinegun
Green Berets members
of the US Army Special Forces – President
John F. Kennedy authorized the use of the headgear during a visit to Fort
Bragg, NC in 1961.
Green Hornets dextro-emphetamine
tablets (also called “uppers”) used to stay awake under extreme situations.
The use of this medication was not officially sanctioned but everyone carried
it for emergencies.
Ground pounder an infantryman, a grunt
Grunt
Infantry soldier on the battle line – ostensibly derived from the sound
a soldier makes when picking up his rucksack to place it on his back
GSW Gun Shot Wound
Guerrilla An armed combatant
of a resistance movement organized against the standing governmental authority
(de facto or de jure.) These are normally organized into military or paramilitary
units under the command of a central authority.
Guidon a pennant bearing
the unit designation carried by the first man to the right in marching units
Gung ho Hard-charging,
very enthusiastic: Chinese term – brought into the US military lexicon by
troops who fought in the 1900 Boxer Rebellion.
Gunship
An armed helicopter: See Hog or
Huey-Cobra
GVN Government of the Republic of Viet Nam
GySgt. Gunnery Sergeant (US Marines)
H-34 Sikorsky Sea Horse medium transport helicopter
Halozone Tablets Iodine pills used to purify drinking water.
Half-Track WWII
vintage M16 light armored vehicle with two wheels in front and tracks in back.
HM3
Hospital Corpsman 3rd Class (US Navy – Usually attached
to the Marines as medics)
HMC
Chief Hospital Corpsman
Ham & Motherf * * kers Ham and
Lima Beans (probably the most detested C-ration meal in the Vietnam War.)
also “Ham ‘n Chokers”
Hanoi Hannah Female
disc jockey broadcasting communist propaganda and American music to Allied
troops in South Viet Nam
Hanoi Hilton
American POW nickname for the Hoa Loa Prison in Hanoi, North Viet Nam
Hard-charger
motivated, a doer, active (see gung-ho)
Hatch
Door (Navy/Marines)
Hawk (the hawk) cold
biting wind – for paratroopers: dangerous jump conditions because of high
winds on the drop zone.
Hawkeye
US Navy E2-A aerial assets controller
Head
Toilet (Navy/Marines)
HE
High explosive
HEAT
High Explosive Anti-Tank – a shell that contains a directional shape-charge
in the nose. On impact the force of the explosion, condensed into a small
fireball, is directed at the steel and cuts through it allowing a small white-hot
portion to enter the armored vehicle and explode the munitions inside while
it ricochets off the walls killing or wounding the crew.
Heat Tabs a
smokeless, slow burning, high heat intensity chemical tablet issued to field
troops for heating water and C-rations.
Hercules US
C-130 four-engine turboprop cargo aircraft – began service in the late 1950s
and is still, in its many manifestations the workhorse of the US cargo fleet.
HES
Hamlet Evaluation System – The system of accountability initiated after
Tet 1968 to determine what portion or South Viet Nam was actually under SVN
government control. It listed the areas as A, B, or C, the latter being those
areas with less security. While not perfect, it gave the Americans the ability
to demonstrate to the South Vietnamese leadership the need to concentrate
of the security and well being of its people rather than just fighting a war
of attrition against the North.
High Drag Bomb a high
explosive dumb bomb equipped with drag fins that will deploy when released
slowing the bomb’s fall and allowing it to “fly” into the targets from a low-level
high-speed aircraft.
H&I
Harassment and Interdiction: artillery or mortar fire placed on targets
in a haphazard manner as to location and timing. It sometimes did more harm
than good by alienating the local villagers. By 1970 it was practically not
used in any SVN government controlled area.
Ho Chi Minh Trail the
extensive network of roads and trails that began in North Viet Nam and stretched
into Laos and Cambodia with tendrils into various areas in South Viet Nam.
One of the greatest feats of psychological propaganda was the North’s continued
denial of its existence which required occupation of a large portion of Laos
and Cambodia’s sovereign territory.
Hog A UH1B “HUEY” helicopter normally
armed with ten 2.75mm rockets and four 7.62X51mm M-60 machineguns on hardened
arms extending from the craft. They carried a pilot, co-pilot and 2 door gunners,
each armed with single M60 machineguns and all the ammunition they could lift
and not much else. They became the primary aerial support for the ground troops.
They also provided cover for the “SLICKS” bringing in or taking out combat
troops, LRRPs, re-supplies, etc., and Medevac “Dustoffs.”
Hollywood Something
not completely genuine, unreal, bogus, make believe, exaggerated
Hollywood Jump A
parachute drop without equipment – an easy jump without combat gear
Hook up (the) 1.
To make connection to a unit to the right or left of your unit’s position.
2. To find and communicate with another combat element. 3. To communicate
on the unit radio. 4. The second command in a jump sequence: the order to
hook the static line to the aircraft’s cable.
Honcho man in charge,
a boss; a manager – top honcho: Sergeant Major (absorbed into the military
lexicon from the Japanese in WWII.)
Hon Tre the secret (and
intense) Recondo School situated on the island of the same name off the coast
of South Viet Nam,
Hooch
any kind of shelter
Horn, The
a radio/transmitter
Hose (down) to
bring massive automatic weapons fire on a position as from a gunship’s miniguns
or a Spooky. To sweep in front of a perimeter (see Mad Minute)
Hot
an enemy controlled or contested area such as a Landing Zone
Hot Hoist extraction
of combat personnel under fire using a winch
Howitzer a
long range, breech loaded high angle of fire weapon in 75mm (called a pack
Howitzer or mountain gun) 105mm, 155mm. The name is derived from its inventor.
Huey Shorthand designation for a UH1A or UH1B Helicopter
Huey-Cobra Also Aircobra: Primarily
designed to replace the Hog as the helicopter fire-support platform. The AH-1G
Cobra was armed with a M75 automatic 40mm grenade launcher in the nose and
two 7X62X51mm electric miniguns firing 4,000 rounds per minute on each wing.
The crews painted eyes and sharks mouths on the crafts reminiscent of the
WWII “Flying Tigers” for psychological purposes.
Hump to march,
carry or be burdened with something heavy
Hunter/Killer Team 1. team consisting of a light observation helicopter
(LOH) as the Hunter and a Huey-Cobra as the Killer. If the enemy fired on
the low flying LOH, the Cobra would fire on the enemy gunners. 2. three-man
sniper team consisting of a shooter, an observer with a 20X scope and a security
armed with a M16 equipped with an XM203.
Hush Puppy Smith & Wesson 9mm
Mark 22 Model 0 semiautomatic pistol. It carried a clip of 8 rounds and was
double action. The Hush Puppy was equipped with a silencer. It was effective
at very close ranges (1-25 ft).
ICC International Control Commission
ICS Integrated communications system
IG Inspector General
Imp An experimental survival rifle
designed for the USAF by Bushmaster Corp., around the M16 action using no
stock; the firing group in front of the magazine (bullpup) and no sights.
Some were issued In-country but recalled because whatever it was – rifle/pistol
– was uncontrollable on automatic and overheated to the point where it was
impossible to hold.
Incoming! Artillery or mortar
shells about to land this position!
In-Country
Actual presence in the Republic of South Viet Nam
Infantry
Foot Soldier: an un-mounted combatant – the Army branch of that service
– Infantry officer: an officer trained in fighting conventional un-mounted
foot engagements.
IMC
Instrument Meteorological Condition: a technique developed by the US
Marines during the NVA siege at Khe Sanh using Doppler radar and the on-site
calculations to LOLEX supply pallets during inclement weather or periods of
no-visibility.
Insertion The placement of
troops into an operational area by whatever means necessary to allow entry,
e.g. helicopters, parachutes, aircraft, SCUBA, land vehicles or walking
Intruder US Navy A-6A
combat and reconnaissance aircraft
Irregular(s) armed individual or
unit not a member of a regular armed force or internal self-defense forces.
Iron Triangle The name used to denote
the area where the international borders of Laos, Cambodia and Viet Nam meet.
ISC Information Service Center.
The unit located in Nakhom Phanom, Thailand that ran Operation Mussel Shoals,
the intrusion devices that gave real-time information on enemy movements on
the DMZ
J-1 Assistant
Chief of Staff, Administration/Personnel MACV
J-2 Assistant Chief of Staff, Military
Intelligence MACV
J-3 Assistant Chief of Staff, Operations
MACV
J-4 Assistant Chief of Staff, Quartermaster
MACV
J-5 Assistant Chief of Staff, Civic
Action MACV
Jack Benny the number 39 (his permanent age) used as a simple code as “from Jack Benny, add 10 – which would be the number 49
Jarhead A Marine
Jing or Jing-wa pocket change or loose money (Japanese) (Navy/Marines)
JCS Joint Chiefs of Staff (US)
JDOC Joint Defense Operations Center
– The US/Vietnamese Coordinating Defense Operations for Tan Son Nhut Airfield
and its surrounding security area
Jesus Nut the nut holding the
components of a helicopter’s main rotor onto the helicopter.
JGS Joint General Staff (Army of the Republic of Viet Nam)
Jink to turn hard to avoid enemy fire or detection (USAF
term)
Jody
generic name for the guy stealing you girl while you served in the
military – the subject of many marching ditties e.g. “Ain’t no use in going
home…Jody’s got your gal and gone!”
Jolly Green Giant US
HH-53B rescue helicopter – sometimes used by the grunts to identify the heavily
armed C-47 helicopter used for ground support.
Juicer
a drunk, someone who overly consumed alcoholic beverages
Jump a descent from an aircraft in flight via a parachute
Jump Pay Awarded
to all active paratroopers assigned to an airborne unit and participating
in al least one parachute jump every three months to maintain jump status.
During the Viet Nam war enlisted were paid $55.00 and officers $110.00 per
month.
Jump Status an
individual who has qualified as a parachutist and is assigned to an active
airborne unit requiring the maintenance of airborne proficiency.
Jungle Boots Issued
regulation footwear in Viet Nam. It was made of a combination of leather,
cotton webbing and nylon with thick vulcanized sole. There were holes with
grommets above the soles to allow water to flow and to dry the boot quickly
– later versions had a metal plate insert to prevent the foot being pierced
by Punji stakes – see ankle biter
Jungle Penetrator a heavy device
lowered from a hovering rescue helicopter to extract someone in thick jungle
canopy.
JUSPAO Joint
United States Public Affairs Office: The information office of the Free World
Assistance Forces in South Viet Nam. They where responsible for the daily
press briefings better known as “The Six O’clock Follies.”
KAK Wheel
device used by radiomen to encrypt coordinates for transmission over
their radio
K-BAR Marine-Issue fighting knife
KBA Killed By Air
KC-135 USAF refueling aircraft
Kit Carson Scout Former
Viet-Cong defectors who served as scouts for US units in combat. They proved
to be loyal and reliable. If caught by their former comrades they would be
shot on the spot.
KIA Killed In Action
Kiwi A New Zealander – military forces from New Zealand
KKK
Khmer Kampuchea Krom (literally “Khmer Liberators of Cambodia”) Ethnic
Cambodians living in the part of South Viet Nam that had, just prior to the
French colonization of Indochina, been part of the Khmer Kingdom. They were
bandits and raiders, recruited by the US Special Forces as part of the Civilian
Irregular Defense Groups
Klick
Kilometer (0.62 mile) – also click
KSCK
Khe Sanh Combat Base
L = Lima
Ladder stairs (Navy/Marine)
also Ladderway
Latrine Outdoor toilet
Land Line Ground wire communications
Land Mine an explosive anti-personnel
or anti-vehicle buried in the ground and camouflaged. It is designed to detonate
when downward pressure is applied by a person or vehicle causing death or
damage.
LAPES Low Altitude
Proximity Extraction System (see LOLEX)
LAW Light Anti-tank weapon – the
66mm shoulder fired “throw-away” single-shot American manufactured anti-tank
weapon
Lay Chilly
Lie motionless
Leaping Leena The
program initiated to train Vietnamese Special Forces and Civilian Irregular
Defense Group personnel in long-range patrol tactics. Begun in 1964, its name
was changed to Project Delta in June 1965.
LBJ
Long Binh Jail – the military stockade adjacent to the Binh Hoa airfield
LCpl.
Lance Corporal (US Marine Corps)
LDNN
Lien Doi Nguoi Nhan – Vietnamese Underwater Demolition Team
LLDB Luc Luong Dac Biet – Vietnamese Army Special Forces
Leave
Authorized absence of more than 72 hours (Army) more than 24 hours
(Navy/Marines)
Leatherneck A
US Marine – originated from the leather collars worn on the uniform from 1798
to 1868 for protection against a sword slash
Leg
All non-airborne military personnel
Lifer
a career soldier
Light up (to)
to open fire – to hit a target and destroy it.
LP
Listening Post – usually a 3-man post located a distance from the main
body to give the alert when the enemy was approaching.
LN(O) Liaison (Officer)
LID Light Infantry Division
Liberty Authorize absence of 24 hours or less (Navy/Marines)
LOC Line of communication
Lock ‘n Load Lock a magazine into your
weapon, load a round into the chamber and get ready to use it.
LOH Light observation helicopter – also called “Loach”
LOLEX
Low Level Extraction: a method of air re-supply whereby a palletized
load is delivered by a cargo aircraft, (C-7A; C-123, C-130), flying 5-10’
off the ground. An extraction parachute is released pulling the load, which
is on rollers, out of the aircraft onto the ground at around 100 mph. The
load lands rear-end first then plows into the ground coming to a stop. Also
called GPES and LAPES.
Loop ‘n Scoop A
technique used by Special Forces, SEALs and LRRPs on patrol in enemy held
areas wherein the entire unit would move right or left quickly and loop back
to behind their original line of march to catch anyone following them.
LHA
Lost to Hostile Action: the euphemism used to classify someone killed
in action (KIA) before 1967.
Loss Incident Military
euphemism meaning the exact time when and circumstance under which an individual
soldier, sailor or airman died.
LRRP Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol
LRPR (Lurps) Rations
developed for use by combat personnel that had to be out for long periods
without a re-supply. They were dehydrated meals that re-hydrated when the
package holding the meal was filled with water (preferably hot).
LT
Pronounced El Tee – a lieutenant
LtCol.
Lieutenant Colonel
LtGen.
Lieutenant General (3 stars)
LZ Landing zone
M = Mike
M1 Garand WWII
vintage semiautomatic, gas operated, air cooled, shoulder fired weapon which
held an 8-round clip. It was too big and cumbersome for the South Vietnamese
and was soon phased out of service and replaced by the M1 and M2 Carbines.
M11
Chloroquine-Primaquine anti-malarial pill required to be taken once
a week by all US personnel in Viet Nam. Many refused it because of its side
affects that included nausea and diarrhea
M16A1 By 1967, the standard issue American battle rifle firing
a 5.56 mm bullet
M1911A1 Military
designation for the Browning invented Colt .45 semi-automatic pistol. It used
a clip of 7 rounds and, although a powerful handgun, was cumbersome to aim.
Carried by officers, radio operators, grenadiers, medics, machine–gunners
and mortar crews in the infantry units.
M1919A6 WWII
vintage light machine-gun firing .30-06 ammunition, it was used extensively
in South Viet Nam by the ARVN, RF/PF and CIDG forces.
M-60
M-1960A1 light machine-gun in 7.62 X 51 mm, its design is very similar
(but an improvement on) the WWII German MG-34 LMG.
M-79 40 mm grenade launcher; resembles a large single shot top-break shotgun. The weapon was intended to bridge the gap between a hand thrown hand grenade and a mortar. It was extremely accurate up to 100 meters and the enemy hated it to the point of training their troops to concentrate their firepower on the grenadiers.
MACV Military Assistance Command, Vietnam
MACV-SOG Military
Assistance Command, Vietnam Studies & Observation Group. The pseudonym
(cover) for Special Operations Units – These units included Army Special Forces,
Naval forces and SEALs, Marines, and USAF contingents made up to accomplish
specialized tasks such as long range patrols, cross-border reconnaissance,
prisoner grabs, etc.
Ma’ Deuce An M-2 .50 caliber heavy barrel machinegun
Mad Minute a
concentration of all the units’ weapons at their maximum rate of fire for
a short period
Mag. Short term for a magazine that feeds a weapon see also
Clip
Maj. Major
Malayan Gate A
booby-trap consisting of a long bamboo pole studded on one end with smaller
sharpened pieces heat-treated for strength. The device is made lethal by tying
it to a tree on a trail or known pathway; wetting the large bamboo and bending
it to put it under tension like a bow. The device is then attached to a figure-4
trip wire device. When the device is sprung, the bamboo piece shoots back
into position ramming itself and the sharpened stakes into the victim, usually
at chest high. A variation is a log imbedded with bamboo spikes suspended
by a rope which, when sprung, causes the heavy log to swing into the victim
impaling him/her on the spikes.
Master Parachutist in the US Army,
a paratrooper with at least 65 parachute jumps. In order to be awarded Master
parachutist wings you must first attain the level of Senior Parachutist and
successfully complete an advanced jumpmaster course. Also “Master Blaster.”
MAF Marine Amphibious Force
Maggie’s Drawers
a missed shot – used on the rifle range to describe the red disc that
marks a miss
MARS
Military Affiliate Radio Station – this organization greatly helped
raise the morale of troops serving in South Viet Nam by relaying messages
to and from their families.
MATSB Mobile advanced tactical support base
MEDCAP
Medical Civic Action Program
McNamara’s Folly The name given to the idea of the then Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara to place a “electronic sensing fence” which would run the entire length of the DMZ and alert our side when the enemy was moving across. Note: It would have worked if they would have trained the personnel better and not run it with so many “desk jockeys,” getting between the fighting units and the information.
Medevac
Medical Evacuation
MF Mike Force: The Special Forces
CIDG reaction forces
MG Machine-gun
MGen Major General (2 stars)
MGF Mobile Guerrilla Force
MGySgt Master Gunnery Sergeant
MIA Missing in action
MiG Generic name for Soviet fighter aircraft (Mikoyan-Gurevich)
19,21,23s
Millipede
The multi-legged insect that grows to a length of 6 inches and will
impart a nasty bite.
MIKE or MSF
Special Forces Mobile Strike Force
Minigun Modern version of the multiple-barrel Gatlyn Gun in
7.62 X 51 mm caliber
Mobile Guerrilla Unit A Special Forces (usually) company size unit (90 CIDG 3 USASF) that infiltrated inconspicuously into enemy-held areas and operated like the local guerrilla forces except for living off the land. They were re-supplied using napalm canisters to throw off the enemy who would otherwise see resupply parachutes and locate the unit.
Monitor Heavily armored LCM-6 (40mm cannon or 105mm howitzer)
Monkey Key
a high-speed device used by SF radio operators to send Morse code over
the air.
Monsoon Yearly
rain period – In South Viet Nam it came from July – September and delivered
very heavy rain to the area.
Moon Beam C-47
illumination aircraft – it could put out fifty 1-million candlepower parachute
flares, each one hovering in its parachute for about 7 minutes.
Morse Code a
code consisting of dots and dashes used worldwide to communicate over AM radios.
Special Forces radiomen where expected to send/receive a minimum of 15 words
per minute (WPM) to qualify for deployment with an A team. Cross-trained NCO
and Officers where expected to send/receive a minimum of 5 wpm.
mm
millimeter: metric unit used to classify the size of the bore of a
weapon that determines the size projectile it fires.
MP Military Police
MPC
Military Payment Certificate – US personnel where not authorized to
use dollars in Viet Nam. They traded in their dollars on a 1-1 exchange when
arriving In-country at their respective casual company (Marines) or Replacement
depots (Army). Neither US dollars nor MPC were authorized for your use in
the local economy but many retailers took them (especially the Chinese and
Indian merchants) and then exchanged them for Vietnamese Dongs or US dollars
on the black market.
MPC Exchange Day The date, usually
unannounced, when the Allies changed from one design of MPC script to another.
There was usually a horde of panicky merchants attempting to get Americans
to exchange the old MPC for new ones. Regulations, however, precluded anyone
to receive more than their pay records indicated they where being paid In-country.
Mohawk US
Army OV-1 twin turboprop engine aircraft used primarily for aerial reconnaissance.
It was heavily loaded with photographic and radar equipment, much of it highly
classified.
Morphine Syrette a single 20cc dose of painkiller. It became a practice to pin the used syrette on the wounded man’s collar, dip a finger in his blood and mark his forehead with the letter “M” to prevent him from being overdosed. In the combat units they where issued to Officers, NCOs and medics. In the Special Forces everyone was issued “a six-pack” to place in the upper right pocket of the fatigues. While the potential for abuse existed, few frivolously expended their supply seeing as they never knew when they would need it!
Mortar An indirect
fire weapon in which the projectile is fed into the front of the tube. They
came in 60mm, 81mm and 4.2” sizes
MOS Military
Occupational Specialty
MR Morning Report: The document
submitted each and every morning by a company-size or higher unit to it’s
next higher headquarters advising how many personnel are available for duty,
how many are sick, wounded, on R&R, AWOL, etc.
MR Military
Region
MRF Mobile
Riverine Force
MTC Moving to Contact (Mike Tango November) Short for “We have the enemy located and we are moving
to engage
Mule a much-discredited and maligned
four wheel cargo vehicle, initially issued to airborne units. It was unreliable
and hard to keep running
N = November
NGFS Naval Gunfire Support
NLF National Liberation Front, est. 1960 (see Viet Cong
and PRG)
NOD Night observation device
NP National Police
NPFF National Police Field Force
NAVFORV Naval Forces, Viet Nam
Newbie A new individual in the unit; a replacement; anybody with less time In-country that the speaker. See FNG
NIE National Intelligence Estimate
NSA National Security Agency
NSC National Security Council
NP National Police
NPD Night Defensive Position
No shoulders any snake or reptile
NOFF National Police Field Force
Non-Judicial Punishment See Article 15
Novice Parachutist In the US Army, a paratrooper with a minimum of 5 but less than 25 parachute jumps.
No sweat no
problem: I can do it easily
Nung Vietnamese of ethnic Chinese extraction:
originally from the highlands of North Viet Nam. They served in units usually
commanded exclusively by the US Special Forces. There is a mutual antipathy
between the ethnic Chinese and the Vietnamese.
Numba One Good – the best, first
above everything
Numba Ten Bad – the worst, low
down. The inevitable inflation eventually caused this slang term to be changed
to “Numba ten thou(sand).”
NVA
North Vietnamese Army (Regulars) US designation (see PAVN)
O = Oscar
OB
Operational Base
OCS
Officer Candidate School
O.D. 1. Officer
of the day: Battalion or above units – designated officer in charge when the
unit has shut down for the day. 2. Olive Drab: the most common military shade of dark green used on vehicles,
combat gear and uniforms.
OIC
Officer In Charge
Olfatronic Personnel
Detector
The much touted but seldom effective “People Sniffer” to be
used in known routes of enemy troops to detect their presence by the strength
of ammonia gases in the air.
ONTOS
Armored track vehicle mounting six 106mm recoilless rifles (Marines)
OP
Observation Post
OPCON
Operational Control
Operation Ranch Hand The defoliation
of jungle and forest that constituted save-havens for the enemy. Using C-123
Provider Aircraft the US dumped 11,000 pounds of defoliants on Viet Nam, Laos
and Cambodia. The aircraft could spray a 300-acre area in four minutes. Approximately
6,250 square miles of South Viet Nam have been affected, though much is regenerating
itself.
OPORD
Operations Order
Ordnance
In the battlefield, anything that is fired or explodes
OSD
Office of the Secretary of Defense
OSI
Office of Special Investigations (USAF)
Otter
US Army U-1 single engine cargo aircraft used for camp re-supply. Their motto was “Low, slow and reliable.”
Overhead
Ceiling (Navy/Marine)
Overlapping fires area
where the fire to two weapons converge: the principle of having two or more
weapons covering a fan-shaped area to the front of the battlefield and insuring
they overlap so that no area is lacking in coverage.
Over the Hill
absent without authorization; also going crazy; also too old for the
job
Over the hump
More than halfway through
P = Papa
P-38
The ubiquitous and very necessary G. I. folding can opener.
Pacification what
we where supposed to have been doing at the hamlet and village level in South
Viet Nam. Analogous to “Winning the Hearts and Minds.”
PA&E
Pacific Architects & Engineers – one of the several civilian concerns
that handled construction and maintenance in South Viet Nam for the military.
Pathet Lao
Laotian communist guerrillas – subservient to North Viet Nam
Passionate Pink
Lip balm for chapped lips
Pathfinder individual
or unit trained to set up drop and landing zones, control air traffic and
run small-scale air-control operation during insertions and extraction of
airborne or airmobile units.
Pathfinder Badge The winged torch
device awarded to US Army graduates of the Pathfinder School at Fort Benning,
GA.
PAVN People’s Army of Viet Nam – The
North Vietnamese Army: The US and its allies in South Viet Nam refused to
use this designation and instead used NVA.
Pedicab See Cyclo
PCF Patrol
Craft Fast – See Swift Boat
PCS
Permanent change of station
PDO
Property Disposal Office
P&D
Pacification & Development
PF Popular Forces: South Vietnamese
village defense troops initially trained by the US Special Forces they were
later turned over to ARVN and US advisors
PFC Private First Class
Phoenix Project The program for neutralizing
the VCI (US terminology). The RVN terminology was Phuong Hoang
Phonetic Alphabet Used in voice land-line or radio communications
to insure comprehension
A = Alpha B = Bravo C = Charlie D
= Delta
E = Echo F = Foxtrot G = Golf H = Hotel
I = India J = Juliet K = Kilo L = Lima
M = Mike N = November O = Oscar
P = Papa
Q = Quebec R = Romeo S = Sierra T
= Tango
U = Uniform V = Victor W = Whiskey X
= X-Ray
Y
= Yankee Z = Zebra
Piaster (P’s)
South Vietnamese currency – hung over from the French colonial period.
Piece a small arm
weapon, pistol, carbine or rifle, grenade launcher or LMG
Pilatus Porter German manufactured U-10,
single engine turboprop fixed wing aircraft used initially for clandestine
work in Tibet and Laos. It could take off and land on very small, rough surface
airfields, in areas where it was difficult for even helicopters to operate.
PLAF People’s Liberation Armed Forces;
the military arm of the NLF (see Viet Cong/NLF/PRG
PLF Parachute Landing Fall – the
position assumed prior to landing from a parachute jump
Point (The) the soldier or unit
leading a combat element. The first soldier or first element that is expected
to make contact with the enemy
Pogey Bait candy, sweets (Navy/Marines)
POL Generic
acronym for petroleum, oil and lubricants
Police Call Time allocated to clean
up an area
Police (to) Pick up or clean
Poncho issued rain cover
made of cloth impregnated with rubberized material it is 4 X 7 feet with a
hole to which is attached a hood and grommets for making a hooch
Poncho Liner issued nylon camouflage
blanket that can be attached inside the poncho or used independently. Also
called Snoopy Blanket.
Poop Information,
“The word”
Pop (a) (to)
launch or initiate as in “pop a flare” or “pop smoke.”
Pop-Flare hand-launched aerial
illumination flare – it lit up an area of about 50 meters for about 3 minutes,
depending on the wind conditions.
POS Permanent
Change of Station – a transfer from one unit or base to another
POV Privately
Owned Vehicle
PPDC
Provincial Pacification & Development Council
Prick 10,25, 77 Slang
for the AN/PRC-10/25/77 portable FM field radios (Army and Navy Portable Radio
Communicator) The PRC 25 was transistorized and provided 920 channels for
two-way communications. The newer PRC-77 provided voice scrambling capability
to field troops.
Profile
A medical excuse from duty
Prov.
Provisional
PRU Provincial Reconnaissance Unit:
CIA funded, Special Forces led forerunner of the Phoenix Project.
PSA
Province Senior Advisor
PSDF
People’s Self Defense Force
PSP Pierced Steel Planking – A steel slab with connecting ends each measuring 3 X 8 feet it was lightened by 2” holes cut into it. They had side cuts to interlock. When pieced together they could provide a surface over soft ground or grass for trucks travel or where aircraft could land. It was used extensively in Viet Nam.
PSYOPS
Psychological Operations
PT
Physical Training
PT-76
Soviet manufactured amphibious tank first used by the NVA in their
assault on the Special Forces Camp at Lan Vie in 1970
PTSD
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder: A psychological condition that occurs
following a stressful situation e.g. combat, accident, rape, assault, etc.
PTSD manifests itself by anxiety, depression, guilt, sorrow or grief, low
self-esteem or any combination of these symptoms. The condition is treatable.
Punji stake Bamboo stick sharpened
at both ends, the ends being heat-treated for strength. One end was usually
smeared with human excrement and a number of them were placed in a hole on
trails usually around VC strongholds or villages. The hole was camouflaged
so the unwary traveler would step in and become impaled, causing an injury
that would quickly become infected.
Puff (The Magic Dragon) AC-130E aircraft
armed with either a 4 - 7.62mm miniguns, a .40mm cannon or a 105mm howitzer
used to support ground operation.
Pucker factor
fear indices – the tighter the pucker the more the fear
PVT
Private
PW or POW
Prisoner of war
PX
Post Exchange – see Base Exchange
Quad-50
WWII vintage weapon mounting four electrically fired .50 M2 heavy machine
guns. This weapon was originally designed for anti-aircraft use but where
primarily employed in South Viet Nam as convoys escorts and as a mobile reserve
in some base camps. Some were mounted on M-48 tank chassis and some welded
to the bed of a 6X6 truck.
Quarters
Living area (see billets)
Quartermaster
Designation of the branch responsible for supplying the armed forces
with adequate supplies to perform their duties in accordance with their respective
TO&E
Queen’s Cobra
Elite Thai forces serving with Free World Forces in South Viet Nam
Quonset Hut Pre-fabricated
tin hut used for living quarters, offices, hospitals, etc.
RAC
River Assault Craft
Rack
A bed
RAD
River Assault Division
Rallier
anyone who came over to the SVN side under the chieu hoi program
Rally Point
a predetermine point located in the area of operation and disseminated
to all members of a unit, team or camp where troops are to go to if the integrity
of the unit is broken up by enemy action.
A point to which all members of a LRRP or commando team are to meet
after completion of a mission for further movement to their pickup point
Randall
The much sought after knife, particularly the Model 14 attack knife
or the hollow handled survival knife. At the time, it was considered the epitome
of fine knives, and highly esteemed by combat troops.
Ranger(s) An
elite US Army unit: An individual who has undergone a rigorous course to hone
special skills in patrolling, reconnaissance and special warfare techniques
that make him uniquely qualified to undertake complex hazardous mission.
Rank
The military method of delineating grades of responsibilities and leadership.
Military personnel are subject to all lawful orders given by anyone above
their rank.
US ARMY MILITARY
RANK STRUCTURE USED DURING THE VIETNAM WAR
Army Enlisted
Army Officer
|
E-1 |
Recruit |
No Stripes |
|
O-1 |
2nd Lieutenant |
1 Gold Bar |
|
E-2 |
Private |
No Stripes |
|
O-2 |
1st Lieutenant |
1 Silver Bar |
|
E-3 |
Private 1st
Class |
1 Stripe |
|
O-3 |
Captain |
2 Silver Bars |
|
E-4 |
Corporal Specialist 4th Class* |
2 Stripes |
|
O-4 |
Major |
Gold Maple Leaf |
|
E-5 |
Sergeant Specialist 5th
Class* |
3 Stripes |
|
O-5 |
Lieutenant Colonel |
Silver Oak Leaf |
|
E-6 |
Staff Sergeant Specialist 6th
Class* |
3 Stripes 1 rocker |
|
O-6 |
Colonel |
Silver Eagle |
|
E-7 |
Sergeant 1st
Class Specialist 7th
Class* |
3 Stripes 2 rockers |
|
O-7 |
Brigadier General |
1 Silver Star |
|
E-8 |
Master Sergeant Master Specialist* |
3 Stripes 3 rockers |
|
O-8 |
Major General |
2 Silver Stars |
|
E-8 |
First Sergeant |
3 Stripes 3 rockers and
1 diamond in Center |
|
O-9 |
Lieutenant General |
3 Silver Stars |
|
E-9 |
Sergeant Major |
3 Stripes 3 Rockers 1
Star in Center |
|
O-10 |
General |
4 Silver Stars |
|
E-9 |
Master Sergeant Major |
3 Stripes 3 rockets a
star with a wreath around it |
|
O-11** |
General |
5 Silver Stars |
*
The specialist rank was created to promote enlisted personnel without command
responsibilities. Non-commissioned Officers wore stripes, administrative and
support personnel wore a shield with an eagle in the center for Specialist
4th; the same shield with a rocker underneath denoted 5th
class; 2 rockers 6th, and so on
**
Five Star General Rank – equivalent to the European Field Marshall – is only
awarded during times of war by the US. Only 5 Army generals where promoted
to 5-Star rank while living: General George C. Marshall, General Dwight D.
Eisenhower; General Omar Bradley; General Henry H. “Hap” Arnold and General
Douglas McArthur. There is no living American 5-Star General. General George
Washington was promoted to Five Star rank posthumously.
NVA RANK STRUCTURE
AND INSIGNIAS USED DURING THE VIETNAM WAR
Ostensibly,
being a “people’s army,” the NVA had no rank designation and regulars were
only identified as “Cadre.” The NVA, however, soon found that every large
organization requires structure to function efficiently and the rank and insignia
created more-or-less paralleled that of the Soviet Union’s military.
Enlisted rank EM Insignia
Officer
rank Off. Insignia
|
Private 2nd Class |
1 silver star |
|
Student Officer |
horizontal bar |
|
Private 1st Class |
2 silver stars |
|
2nd Lieutenant |
1 silver star over horizontal stripe |
|
Corporal |
Horizontal stripe with 1 silver star in
the middle |
|
Senior Lieutenant |
2 silver stars over horizontal stripe |
|
Sergeant |
Horizontal stripe with 2 silver stars in
the middle |
|
Captain |
3 silver stars over horizontal stripe |
|
Senior Sergeant |
Horizontal stripe with 3 silver stars in
the middle |
|
Senior Captain |
4 silver stars over horizontal stripe |
|
|
|
|
Major |
1 silver star over 2 horizontal stripes |
|
|
|
|
Lieutenant Colonel |
2 silver stars over 2 horizontal stripes |
|
|
|
|
Colonel |
3 silver stars in triangle over 2 horizontal
stripes |
|
|
|
|
Senior Colonel |
4 silver stars over 2 horizontal stripes |
|
|
|
|
Major General |
1 large gold star |
|
|
|
|
Lieutenant General |
2 large gold stars |
|
|
|
|
Colonel General |
3 large gold stars |
|
|
|
|
Senior General |
4 large gold stars |
Rank
insignia was worn only on the collar after 1963. Rank tabs where heavy red
felt with red cloth backing, horizontal bars where yellow felt or silk. General
officers’ tabs where etched in gold bullion. PAVN changed its rank structure
and insignias in late 1975.
RAP
Rocket Assisted Projectile – first tried in Viet Nam, it was a device
used to extend the range of artillery projectiles. Initial reports indicated
they diminished accuracy.
Rappel
descend from a cliff, helicopter or building by use of a rope and carabineer
Rattan
Palms having many slender, spiny stems growing in dense clumps up to
twenty feet high. This plant will twine and grow to a height of 250 feet.
Razor wire also
known as German Tape: It is constructed of spring steel and has razor sharp
blades every 8-14”. This wire will not just snag you like barbwire, it will
slash your skin and flesh and leave deep cuts.
Recoilless Rifle (RR) A weapon that,
when fired, is stabilized because part of the propellant charge is vented
towards the rear. It is distinguished from the Bazooka that fires a rocket
and leaves no casing while the RR fires a round that leaves a casing and its
barrel is rifled. During the Vietnam War the Allies employed vintage WWII
57mm and 75mm and the newer 90mm shoulder fired RR, plus vehicle mounted 106mm
ground and jeep mounted plus the US Marines’ ONTOS Vehicle mounting six-106mm
RR.
RD/RDC
Revolutionary Development/Revolutionary Development Cadre
Red Cross National
and International organization dedicated to ease the pain and suffering of
those in need. It provided a place to go for servicemen and women and established
areas where service members could send and receive correspondence. The famous
“Doughnut Dollies” were Red Cross workers.
Redleg
slang for an artillerymen
REMF Rear echelon mother-f * * * * r:
The derogatory epithet used by ‘grunts’ to describe their fellow combat soldiers
who got themselves assigned to a safe berth in the rear areas to avoid combat.
REPO-DEPO Replacement Depot – a holding
unit for unassigned officers and men waiting assignment orders. Navy/Marine
call it a Casual Company.
Rest/Repose The two US hospital ships
assigned off the coast of South Viet Nam.
Revetment Reinforced defenses
– using sandbags, PSP or other materials
RIF Reduction In Force – Defense
Department program to reduce forces after the Vietnam War.
Ring Knocker A military academy graduate
– West Point officers where said to “knock” their rings to identify themselves
to their fellow classmates.
R&R Rest and
Recuperation – sometimes referred to as I&I (Intoxication and Intercourse.)
R&R could be taken In-country or out and there was free transportation
provided to Bangkok, Thailand, Hong Kong, Hawaii, Sidney, Australia, Singapore,
Taipei, Kuala Lampur, Manila and Penang. After 1970 troops where authorized
R&R in the US provided they presented a round trip ticket to ensure they
returned on time. Few failed to return.
RF Regional Forces: South Vietnamese
equivalent to the US reserve units. They normally operated in company or battalion
strength
Roadrunner
Special Forces Project Delta Reconnaissance Team designation
Rock ‘n Roll
Fire a weapon on full automatic
Roger Radio/Telephone communications
meaning “I understand or agree” Begun during WWII when the phonetic for R
was “Roger.” Radio operators began using it as short for “Right, I understand.”
ROK Republic
of Korea
Rolling Thunder
air operations over North Viet Nam from 1965 to 1969
Rome Plow An especially built,
very powerful bulldozer with a large tree-cutting blade and a cage to protect
the driver/operator.
RON Remain over
night
Round
One bullet, mortar, or artillery shell
Round Eye
Slang for Occidental women
RPD Soviet manufactured light machine
gun whose many component parts where interchangeable with the AK-47
RPG Rocket propelled grenade – a
Soviet copy of the WWII German “Panzerfaust” shoulder-fired anti-tank weapon.
There were two versions: the RPG2 and the RPG7 that was almost identical but
equipped with a sophisticated sight.
RR See Recoilless
Rifle
RSSV Rung Sat Special
Zone
RTA Royal Thai
Army
RTO Radio Telephone
Operator – the guy who got to hump the radio.
Rubber Lady Inflatable air mattress
for field use
Ruck Rucksack
– backpack
Ruff-Puff
Regional Forces/Popular Forces
Rules of Engagement Set of rules
(orders) issued to the fighting forces by men in suits and ties who never
heard a shot fired in anger. The rules changed often, depending on world opinion
of the up-coming elections in the US.
Russell’s Viper Poisonous snake found in the
open coastal areas and lowlands of South Viet Nam – it is mottled brown, black
and subdued yellow. It is seldom found in forest. Active at night, sleeps
in the day. Will hiss loudly when alarmed. Aggressive if surprised. When striking
it will lunge forcefully with its entire body and usually holds on after biting.
Venom is highly toxic but relatively slow-acting. Its poison sacs have a double
fatal dose capacity. This is one of the most dangerous of Asiatic snakes.
RVN Republic
of Viet Nam (see SVN)
RVNAF Republic of
Viet Nam Armed Forces
RZ Reconnaissance
Zone
S = Sierra
S-1 Administrative/Personnel
section or officer for brigade or smaller units
S-2 Intelligence
section or officer for brigade or smaller units
S-3 Operations
section or officer for brigade or smaller units
S-4 Logistics
section or officer for brigade or smaller units
S-5 Civil
Affairs section or officer for brigade or smaller units
SA Small
arms
Salt as in
“Old Salt” – someone with experience, and old-timer
SAM Surface-to-air
missile
Same-Same Exactly alike…same as…
Sapper The original
English army designation was for their engineer specialist in siege warfare.
In the Vietnam War, it was used to identify VC/NVA commandos that specialized
in stealth demolition attacks on base camp defenses.
SAR Search and Rescue – operations
usually involving a downed pilot.
Satchel Charge Pre-constructed demolition
charge in a web satchel normally containing ten lbs. of TNT, double primed.
These charges were primarily employed to cave in tunnel complexes.
Scoshi A little bit,
small amount (Korean) – Sometimes shortened to Scosh’
Screaming
Eagles US Army 101st Airborne
Division
Scuttlebutt Rumors, unconfirmed
talk – also drinking fountain (Navy/Marines)
SDF Self-Defense
Forces
Seabees Naval construction
Engineers
Search ‘n Clear also Search ‘n Destroy: an
operation to find and fix the enemy combat unit and kill or capture them.
Sea King US Navy SH-3A
Rescue helicopter
Sea Snakes There are two major varieties
of sea snakes swimming off the coasts of Viet Nam: they are the Hook-nosed
(4-5 feet) and Hardwick’s (2-3 feet) sea snakes. The Hook-nosed is very common;
swims in large groups and is aggressive and vicious. Venom capacity for both
snakes is small but highly toxic muscle-poison. Both have large heads, strong
neck muscles and flat tails for swimming. They both can bite under water.
Sea Sprite US Navy UH-2C Sea
Rescue helicopter
Search and Destroy a tactic based on General William Westmoreland’s
theory of attrition of the VC/NVA that would result in North Viet Nam giving
up the war. Initially a sound idea given that the North was heavily infiltrating
the South with regulars in 1964-65. By early 1967 it became irrelevant for
several reasons not the least of which was the fact that General Westmoreland
was not given the authority to attack the VC/NVA depots and staging areas
in Cambodia and Laos.
SEAL Sea, Air and Land – US Navy elite
commando unit first tested in the Vietnam War
Senior Parachutist A parachutist who has completed at least 25 military
parachute jumps and has successfully completed a jumpmaster course
SERE Survival/Evasion/Resistance/Escape
– Four modes of conduct taught to the military regarding the actions to take
behind enemy lines or if a prisoner of war. In 1963 the Army Special Forces
established a course to teach selected personnel special survival/evasion
and countermeasures to combat interrogation methods used by the enemy. This
course was later expanded to the SERE course that all Special Operations personnel
are required to undergo as part of their training.
Shake ‘n Bake a young sergeant that attended
Basic Training, Advanced Infantry Training and a special NCO school and promoted
to E5. They arrived In-country with no military or combat experience.
Shape Charge A demolition device pre-cut
or prepared to direct its force in one primary direction
Shawnee CH-21 helicopter
– also Flying Banana
Shit-bird Derogatory term
for someone who always does it wrong no matter what
Shit-can To throw away,
dispose of summarily
Shit-on-a-Shingle SOS – Chipped beef on toast
Sick Call Time designated
for the regular sick to see a medic or doctor
Sick Bay A clinic or hospital
(Navy/Marine)
Silencer a device clipped
or screwed to the front of a rifle or pistol that uses baffles to reduce the
speed of the gases escaping the weapon when fired reducing the “sonic boom”
created by the bullet exiting the barrel. No silencer is “noiseless.”
Its effectiveness lies
in the fact that humans, especially combatants, are attuned to a particular
resonance to recognize the sound of a fired weapon. The silencer alters that
resonance making it difficult to detect.
Sioux An H-13 helicopter, seating two,
1 passenger and a pilot also known as “Bubbles”
Sissy rope an extra piece of
rope securing the two lines on the extraction device (Stabo, McGyer, Rigs)
in case one rope broke – an added safety.
SITREP Situation Report
Six (the) Radio code for
the commander
Six-By… a 6X6 – 2½ Truck
made by Studebaker-Reo initially
Six O’clock a method of indicating
a location e.g. “they are to my six o’clock” = they are behind me.
SF Special
Forces
SFC Sergeant
First Class
SFGA Special Forces
Group, Airborne
SGT Sergeant
SGT. MAJ. Sergeant Major
Shadow C-119K aircraft
armed with four-7.62mm Vulcan machineguns and two-20mm cannons used to support
ground operations (sometimes called “Stingers”)
Short Nearing the end of a tour of duty
Short Round A mortar or artillery
round falling short of its intended target sometimes converting it into ‘friendly
fire – Also: someone of small stature
Shorttimer Personnel with less
than 30 days to DEROS
SKS Soviet Simonov Carbine using
the 7.62 X 39 mm Soviet round (although by our specifications it was really
a rifle.) It used a fixed 10-round magazine that was loaded from the top using
a stripper clip.
Skate(d) Have it easy,
didn’t have it hard
Skycrane CH-54 heavy load
helicopter
Sky Pilot A military chaplain
(priest/rabbi/minister/mullah)
Skyraider WWII vintage single-engine
bomber eminently suited for counterinsurgency work. Several models were used
in Viet Nam: A1E; A1G and A1H.
Sky Soldier a member of the 173rd
Airborne Brigade
Slack man the soldier directly
behind the point man in a patrol
Sleeper An undercover
agent – also called a mole
Slick ‘Unarmed’ UH-1B helicopter used
for transporting troops and supplies to the front lines. They had two crewmen
assigned, one on each door, armed with M-60 7.62X51mm machineguns.
Slope or Slope-head Derogatory term to describe an Asian person: In-country
personnel were forbidden by MACV regulations to use such terms to or in the
presence of their Asian allies.
SNAFU Situation Normal
All F_ _ _ _ _ Up!
Sneaky Pete Non-SF term for a member
of the US Army Special Forces
Sniper Generic term
which has come to mean a single shooter but the military meaning is
that of a highly trained marksman equipped with a well-tuned rifle, match
ammunition and using a telescopic sight zeroed to fire on targets well in
excess of the distances normally considered in range of a standard infantry
weapon.
Snoop ‘n Poop
Reconnoiter – Reconnaissance mission
Snoopy Blanket
a poncho liner
SOG Studies
and Observation Group
Sorry ‘bout
that! Mock apology
– cynicism
SPAT Self Propelled Anti Tank: a 90mm
gun mounted on an open track vehicle sometimes referred to as the “Scorpion.”
It had no protection for the crew and was quickly fazed out of use in Viet
Nam.
SOI Signal Operating Instruction
–contained the frequencies and codes for a given unit
SOP Standing
(Standard) Operating Procedure
SOS the three letter international
signal of distress – first used by ship radio operators it does not, as some
assert, stand for “save our ship.” It was used because the letter S (·
· ·) and the letter O (- - -) are quite distinguishable and easy
to send on a Morse key.
SPARS Significant
Problem Areas Report
Special Forces
See Green Berets
Speedy Four Specialist 4th
Class – administrative rank equivalent to corporal
Spider Hole An individual cave or
hideout from which an enemy rifleman can rise, fire and conceal himself
Spooky AC-47 aircraft
armed with three XMU-470, 7.62X51mm Vulcan machineguns or two 20mm cannons
used to support ground operations
Spotlight The often incomprehensible
reports issued by Nakhon Phanom, Thailand, based on the signals they received
from the Seismic Intrusion Detectors (see AN-PSR-1 and McNamara’s Folly.)
Squad The basic US Army infantry unit
commanded by a Sergeant E-5 and normally consisting of 12 men broken down
into 2 fire teams of 6 men each
Squared Away
Neat and orderly – following the rules – meeting military criteria
SSDF Secret Self-Defense
Force
SSI Standing
Signal Instruction
SSgt Staff Sergeant
Stand Down a period of time for
refitting, repairing and obtaining new equipment and/or personnel where the
only operational activity may be security
Standby On Hold – waiting
or wait
Starfighter USAF F-104 fighter
jet
Starlifter USAF C-141 cargo
jet
Starlight Scope Night Vision devices using
the principle of light intensification. The first generation of these where
tested during the Vietnam War with great success.
Steel Pot Outside portion
of the issue combat helmet. The ”pot” could be separated from its liner and
used to shave, bathe and wash your clothes, proving new technology isn’t necessary
better.
Sterilize/Sterilized 1. To restore a site to its original condition
before leaving it, i.e. C-ration cans, cigarette butts, broken branches, footprints,
etc. 2. The action taken by an individual subject to be taken prisoner from
carrying anything that would give away his/her identity, unit, mission, etc.
Stinging Tree Called Mag ong voi
in the South and Nan tia to in the North of Viet Nam, it is a small
tree that grows 10-16 feet in height. Its leaves are oblong and grow 6-12”
length and 2-4” in width with a glossy top and lighter green bottom. Contact
causes itching, prickling and small red welts which cause a stabbing, radiating
pain that may last for 3 or more hours; then swelling and enlarged lymph nodes
that may last for up to 3 days. Extreme or prolonged contact may be fatal.
Water or rubbing do not relieve the pain – it intensifies it.
Stockade Jail (Army)
STOL Short Take Off and Landing a fixed-wing
aircraft that need a very short runway to land and take off e.g. the Pilatus
Porter.
Strap Hanger an airborne term meaning
someone who is not part of the unit but is along for the ride (jump)
Stratofortress USAF B-52 jet bomber
Stripper Clip a device constructed to
hold together a fixed amount of rounds which when inserted in a slot of the
weapon or its magazine can rapidly load the entire content with a downward
push of the ammunition. The Soviet SKS used 10-round stripper clips to load
its fixed magazine. The M16A1 rifle magazine could be loaded using 10-round
stripper clips that came in 100 round bandoleers.
STZ Special
Tactical Zone
Stoner A family of
weapons designed by Stoner – the M63A1 light machine-gun was adopted by the
US Navy SEALs for use in Viet Nam.
Super Constellation USAF C-121 – formerly a commercial passenger aircraft,
the C-121 was rigged with an array of radars, electronic countermeasures and
numerous radios to pick up North Vietnamese MiGs and warn our pilots.
Super Sabre USAF F-100 jet fighter
SVN South Viet
Nam (US designation along with RVN)
Swedish K WWII vintage, Swedish
manufactured 9mm submachine gun with collapsible stock, and a 20-round magazine.
Special Operations and the Special Forces special teams, LRRPs, PRU, etc.
used these, some equipped with silencers for operation. An Egyptian made copy
of the Swedish K fired the .45 round. In either caliber it was effective only
at very short ranges, particularly when fired with the silencer attached.
Swift Boat A US Navy patrol
boat equipped with a 81mm direct fire mortar with a .50 M2 machinegun on top.
Used extensively to back the South Vietnamese Navy in preventing infiltration
of communist soldiers and equipment.
T = Tango
TAC Tactical
TAC AIR Tactical Air Command/Support
Tail Boon The rear portion
of a helicopter that connects the rear rotor with the mainframe of the helicopter
– also the hose extending from the back of a refueling aircraft to which the
aircraft being refueled connects.
Tail end Charlie
last man in the column
Tally-Ho! Term used by pilots
to signal they have sighted the target being pointed out to them
TAOR Tactical Area
of Responsibility
Tarmac All weather hard
surface road, airfield or helipad constructed of compressed macadam
Ten Percent That average of any squad,
team, group or organization which is figured in as not getting “the word”
and thus calculated to do it wrong when the time comes to execute a mission.
TCN Third country
national
TDY Temporary
Duty
The Word Confirmed official
information, the straight scoop – not scuttlebutt
Thumper (The)
See M-79 grenade launcher
Tiger Balm Chinese manufactured
copy of Vicks VapoRub (only stronger) Orientals use it extensively for head
and body aches, colds, etc.
Tiger Piss Beer, in Viet Nam
the best known was Ba Mui Ba (33) Beer; the more sought after was the
beer from the Philippines San Miguel
Tiger Suit camouflage field
uniform worn by US Special Forces and their CIDG soldiers.
Different patterns where
worn by different units of the LLDB, VN Airborne, Rangers and their US advisors.
TL Team
leader
TOC Tactical
Operations Center
Toe Popper A small anti-personnel
mine designed to wound by exploding a charge under a person’s foot just strong
enough to sever a toe or heel. The object was to harass and demoralize the
enemy who took casualties and had to tie up combat personnel evacuating the
injured from the war zone.
TO&E Table of organization
and equipment: The very explicit organizational and equipment chart under
which every US armed forces unit operates. “If it’s not on you TO&E, you
can’t have it!” That includes personnel as well as equipment. Everybody violated
it in Viet Nam, starting with the top commands.
Top or Top
Sergeant Normally a Company First Sergeant
or Battalion Sergeant Major
TOT Time on
target/time over target
TOW tube launched,
optically tracked, wire guided anti-tank missile
Tracer A bullet containing
a phosphorous compound in the tip. When fired the chemical burns and leaves
a trail of fire at night or smoke during daylight (called a signature) Machineguns
on both sides fire a tracer after every 4th round. Communist tracers
where green, Allied tracers where red.
Triage the sorting
for priority of treatment of wounded performed by medics, nurses and doctors
treating a large number of personnel.
Trip Wire a thin wire or
cord attached to a booby trap flare, explosive or Malayan gate that when pulled,
pushed or broken activates the device.
Triple Canopy Layers of thick jungle plants
–intertwined with bamboo- growing at 3 different levels: 2 to 10 feet (ground
level); 11-30 feet, (intermediate); and 30-60 feet (high)
Tunnel Rat Soldier/Marine who
crawled into communist tunnel complexes to search and ferret out the enemy.
Two-step slang for the Asian
green viper found in Viet Nam, (see Wragler’s Viper): advice to “Newbie”:
If you get bit lie down quickly so you wont fall down when you die. It was
an exaggeration!
Typhoon
Asian name for a hurricane – they seem to be stronger in the Pacific
U = Uniform
U2 Essentially a rocket powered
glider with a huge wingspan able to fly higher than the Soviet-built SAMs.
Used to over fly and photograph targets in the North and South.
UCMJ Uniform Code of Military Justice
– the legal handbook regulating general military conduct and the penalties
for infractions thereof. Replaced the Articles of War in 1950 and was updated
in 1961
UN United
Nations
Uncle Ho Nguyen Ai Quoc aka
Ho Chi Minh – In keeping with the mandarin tradition, Ho’s propaganda machine
portrayed him as a “kindly old uncle.”
URC-10 Universal Rescue
Communicator Model-10: It was primarily issued to flight crews for emergency
communications with rescue teams. Later, either by trade, requisition or theft,
they ended up in the hands of Special Forces, MAC-SOG Reconnaissance and LRRP
teams. Use of this radio was highly restricted and severe penalties were
imposed for frivolous employment.
USAID United States
Agency for International Development
US Unites
States
USAF Unites States
Air Force
USARPAC US Army Pacific –
Controls all US Army elements in the Pacific Theater from its headquarters
in Hawaii.
USARV United States
Army, Vietnam
USCG United States
Coast Guard
USMC United States
Marine Corps
USN United States
Navy
USO United Services Organization
– the organization dedicated to providing entertainment and bringing a part
of home to those serving in the military. The best-known ambassador of this
group is Bob Hope who brought shows and entertainers to the troops in WWII,
Korea, Dominican Republic and Viet Nam.
USOM United States
Special Mission
USS United
States Ship
USSF United States
Special Forces
V = Victor
VC Viet Cong: contraction of
Viet-Nam Cong-San (Vietnamese Communist). The name given to the guerrillas
fighting against the South Viet Nam Regime
VCI Viet
Cong Infrastructure
VCLF Viet Cong
Local Force
VCMF Viet Cong
Main Force
VNAF Vietnamese
Air Force (South)
Viet Minh Contraction of
Viet Nam Doc Lap Dong Minh Hoi (Viet Nam Independence League)
Vietnamization The Nixon administration’s
plan to turn over the war to the South Vietnamese while the US withdrew with
honor.
Ville’ Short for
village – used to describe location and distance on the radio
VN Viet
Nam or Vietnamese national
VNN Vietnamese
Navy
VNMC Vietnamese
Marine Corps (South)
VNSF South Vietnamese
Special Forces
Voodoo F101 jet – used
primarily for air recon/photo mission over North Viet Nam
VR Visual
Reconnaissance
VT Variable
Time Fuse for artillery rounds used to fire on troops in open trenches
VVAW Vietnam Veterans Against the War
– Organization formed by Viet Nam Veterans that opposed the war. They were
great props for the anti-war propaganda machine. Many in its ranks where found
not to have served in the military at all.
W = Whiskey
WAC Woman’s
Army Corps – Female US Army personnel not in the medical branch
Waste Kill
Watcher (the)
Enemy soldier
WETSU We Eat This Shit Up! A cheer started
by the US Rangers when enduring stressful physical or psychological situations.
It had spread to the entire Army by the early 60s
WIA Wounded
in action
Web Gear The harness, canvass
belt and other accoutrement connected for carrying canteens, aid pouch, magazine
pouches, knife and pistol holster, etc. in combat. Officially called TA-50.
Also called Load Bearing Gear (LBE.)
Whiskey-Papa Phonetic alphabetizing for
the white phosphorous mortar/artillery round or hand
Willie-Peter grenade. It was highly
demoralizing to troops because it stuck to the skin and
WP burned through to the bone
or the other side of the body it hit.
Willie Peter
Bag Waterproof Bag
– issued as part of a soldier’s field gear (US Marine Corps)
White Star A clandestine training
mission into Laos begun in 1959 to recruit and train Mon Khmer tribesmen to
fight the North Vietnamese/Pathet Lao incursions into Northern Laos. Initially
consisting of Detachment FC-3 with 107 SF personnel operating clandestinely,
by 1961 Operation White Star had grown to 300-400 SF in US uniforms.
White Whale General William C. Westmoreland’s
personal C-123 aircraft while he was COMUSMACV
Whitewalls A military haircut
– the sides and rear are cut almost to the scalp, leaving only a small amount
of hair on the top.
Wild Weasel An F-4F fighter equipped
with electronic equipment – preceded the bombers to throw off the enemy radar
guided SAMs.
WIEU Weekly Intelligence Estimate Update
White Mice South Vietnamese traffic
police. They wore white uniforms, helmets and gloves hence the nickname
World, The Stateside, any place
but Viet Nam – it didn’t start as a derogatory term but it ended up becoming
one which was frowned upon by the US leadership In-country.
WO Warrant
Officer (This rank does not exist in the US Navy)
WPM Words Per Minute: The amount
designating how many words per minute a radio operator can send/receive intelligible
communications using Morse Code.
Wragler’s Pit Viper this much-maligned snake grows to about 3 ft.
and is bright green in color as an adult. It is a climber and is very common
in bushes, trees and mangroves. The Vietnamese often keep them near their
homes to keep down rodents. This snake is not aggressive, even when handled,
and seldom strikes humans. The bite is painful creating soreness and swelling
at the site but is seldom fatal to humans.
X = X-Ray
XM177E2 See Car-15
XM203 Experimental 40mm grenade launcher
attached to a special hand-guard under the barrel of the M16A1 rifle to give
the grenadier a more effective means of defense than the .45 cal. M1911A1
pistol.
XO Executive
Officer – second in command of a military unit.
X-Ray Team A Communications relay
unit
Y = Yankee
Yankee An American
Yards Short for Montagnards: French for
mountaineers – the hill tribes in the Central Highland of South Viet Nam.
They included many different tribes: the Bru; the Coho; the Rhade; The Jaray;
the Sedang. They were fiercely loyal to the USASF and deeply hated the LLDB
who called them moi that literally translates to “savage” but as used
by the Vietnamese it is closer to the epithet ‘nigger.’
YIP Youth International Party
– a radical anti-war group led by Jerry Rubin and Abbie Hoffman during the
Vietnam War.
Yippie A member of
the Youth International Party
Z = Zebra
Zap To shoot
at, hit, wound or kill someone.
Zip A dead
enemy, sometimes used in a derogatory term for the VC or NVA soldiers.
Zippo Flame thrower
equipped tank, APC or Monitor
Zippo Mission
another name for Search and Destroy Operations
Zulu Phonetics for the letter Z,
also the universal time designation Zulu meaning Greenwich Mean Time
Zulu Message
US Army Casualty Report
Vietnamese terms are
important and the reader of Vietnam War era literature should be familiar
with them.
COMMON VIETNAMESE WORDS AND PHRASES
An
Rice
An Com
Eat
Ao Dai Traditional
female garment for Vietnamese women. It is a long-sleeve, high neck blouse with a split front and rear skirt reaching
to the toes
Ap
Hamlet
Ap Doi Moi
“New Life” Hamlet
Ap Tan Sin
Secure Hamlet
Ba
Three
Ba
married woman (Mrs.)
Bac Si
Doctor/Medic
Bac Si Lau
Colloquial term for venereal desease
Bích Kích Pháo
Mortar
Biet
To know
Binh Tram
NVA way station on the Ho Chi Minh trail
Chieu Hoi
program to induce the enemy to rally to the GVN
Chao Ong / Ba /
Co how are you? {Sir/Mrs/Miss)
Choi (Duc) Oy A
catchall term which, depending on the inflection speed of delivery and circumstance,
can mean from “Holy Cow” to “Goddamnit”
Cớ
single woman (Miss)
Cộng Hóa
Republic
Co Van
Advisor
Ða Phai
Yes
Dan cong
porters and supply transporters
Dau tranh
“the struggle” the concept of People’s Wars of Liberation
Dep
Pretty or beautiful
Di
Go
Dinky Dau
Slang Vietnamese for “Crazy” or senseless
Giàn Phóng Hơa-Tiẻn Rocket launcher (generic)
Hai
Two
Hoi Chan
a rallier under the chieu hoi program
Khom
No, not
Khom Biet
I don’t know
La The
Lam Ten
Lien Doi Nguoi Nhan Underwater Demolition Team (LDNN)
Lúc Lúóng Dặc Biêt Army
Special Forces (LLDB)
Lựu Dạn
Hand grenade (generic)
Moi Derragotory term used by the Vietnamese
for the hill tribes = savage
Mot One
Mau Len
Fast
Mín Land mine (generic)
My (meé) American
Nam Five
Nha Home/house
Nga Sô Russia(n)
Nuoc Water
Nuoc Mam Fish sauce
Ong you (Mr.)
Phuong Hoang program for neutralizing the Viet-Cong
infrastructure in South Viet Nam
Súng Lục Automatic Pistol
Toi I
Viet-Nam Cong-San Vietnamese Communist:
The name given to the guerrillas fighting against the South Viet Nam Regime
shortened to Viet-Cong and VC
Xin Loi I’m
sorry
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