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Glossary Of Vietnam TerminologyA / B / C / D / E / F / G / H / I / J / K / L / M / N / A
Agent Orange - Defoliant/herbicide containing 2,4,T Dioxin AK47 - Soviet/Chicom 7.62mm Kalashnicov assault rifle Albumen - a blood expander carried by medics to replace lost blood AN/PRS-4 - Mine detector used by combat engineers AN/PVS-2 - Smaller Starlight Scope for use on individual weapons AN/TVS-2 - Larger Starlight Scope for use on crew-served weapons AO - Area of Operations, your "neighborhood". Ours were Cochise-Green & Walker APC - Armored Personnel Carrier, usually an M-113 APDS - Armor Piercing Discarding Sabot -The baddest antitank round on earth ARA - Aerial Rocket Artillery - gunships Arc light - Radio code for a 3 ship Cell B-52 Strike ARVN - collection of non-hostile South Vietnamese with weapons Ash and Trash - Administrative functions of HHC AVLB - Armored Vehicle Launched Bridge (usually on an M-60 tank chassis) AW - Automatic Weapons B
B40 - armor defeating shaped charge projectile fired by RPG2 and RPG7; origin unknown Band-Aid Box - Radio code for the medic vehicle, usually an M-113 APC Band-Aid - Radio code for the medic Baseball Grenade - Defensive Fragmentation hand grenade: explodes on impact Base Camp Commando - See REMF Base Piece - howitzer closest to the battery center, fired first round of fire mission BDA - Bomb Damage Assessment - we counted the craters Beaucoup - Many Beehive Round - 90mm cannon round containing 8,500 darts or "flechettes" called "Green Can" Bic - Vietnamese for "understand" "No bic" means "I don't understand" Big Boy - Radio code for a tank Black Can - 90mm Canister round containing 1,000 1/2x5/16 inch pellets Blivet - huge rubber tire-like container for water or diesel fuel: towed or airlifted Blue Legs - Infantrymen Blue Line - Radio code for a stream or river BMFIC - Big Mother F***er In Charge (Usually the Division Commander or ADC maneuver) Boom-Boom - sex with a prostitute Boom-Boom Girl - A prostitute Box - Radio code for an M-113 APC Break Brush - To travel off a trail to avoid mines and booby-traps Break Squelch - To press the transmit button on the radio handset Broken Arrow - Radio code for a unit about to be overrun; diverts all Tactical air to support that unit Bug Juice - Insect Repellent Bug out - get out of the area C
C4 - Plastic Explosive in Claymores we used for heating coffee C and C - Command and Control Ship, usually a Huey, sometimes a Loach CAR-15 - Carbine version of M-16 with collapsible stock - Officers and Special Forces only C Rats - C-Rations. Dog food left over from WWII and canned for GIs in Nam Charlie - Viet Cong, from phonetic alphabet for VC, Victor Charlie Charles - Formal reference to Charlie Charm School - Initial training and orientation upon arrival in-country Cherry Juice - Hydraulic fluid in tank turret traversing system Cherry School - Initial training and orientation upon arrival in-country Chieu Hoi - Literally "Open Arms" - RVN Amnesty program for NVA/VC Chinook - a CH-47 cargo helicopter CIB - Combat Infantryman Badge (a mark of honor among grunts, justifiably so) CIDG - Civilian Irregular Defense Group - Usually Montagnard tribesmen led by U.S. advisers, usually Green Berets Claymore - antipersonnel mine (from Gaelic "claidheamh mor" pronounced like "Claymore" meaning Broad Sword) Class 1 - Rations, usually hot Class 2 - Individual equipment Class 3 - Fuel Class 4 - Barrier material and construction supplies Class 5 - Ammo Class 6 - Booze (hard liquor) Class 7 - Medical supplies Class 8 - Sundries; Coca-Cola, snacks, cigarettes, most common items found in a PX Class 9 - Spares Co-ax - the coaxially mounted M-73 7.62mm machine gun Cockadau - derivative of Vietnamese slang, meaning, "to kill" Coke Girl - a Vietnamese woman who sold everything except boom boom to GIs Concussion Bomb - A bomb containing kerosene that was devastating CONEX - Shipping Container. Sometimes used for housing in RVN D
Daisy Cutter - a 15,000 pound BLU-82 bomb dropped by C130 to clear an LZ Danger Close - an air strike or artillery mission within 100 meters of your location Dee-Dee - To leave Delta Tango - Designated Targets - Pre-selected artillery targets located in daylight for use at night Det-Cord - Explosive that looks like rope- used to daisy-chain claymores Dinky-Dao - or Dinky Dau - Crazy (Americanized Vietnamese) Donut Dolly - Women from the American Red Cross Dragon Wagon - a tank transporter, also called Low Boy Dumbo - A C-123 Provider of the USAF Duster - an M42, an old M24 tank chassis with twin 40mm AA guns in an open turret Dust off - Medical evacuation helicopter, usually a Huey E
E8 - 35mm 16-tube disposable CS gas canister launcher. Had a nasty habit of firing by itself. E&E - Escape and Evade Elephant - Radio code for an M48-A3. Also the real thing: 'Nam was crawling with them Elephant Grass - tall, sharp-edged grass found in the highlands of Vietnam ELINT - Poor intelligence gathered electronically at great expense EOD - Explosive Ordnance Disposal ETS - Estimated Termination of Service - the day you got out of the Army F
FAC - Forward Air Controller, usually flying around in an O-1 Birddog Fast Mover - FAC radio code for F100, F105, or F4C aircraft Fifty - the .50 caliber M2-HB machine gun FNG - F***ing New Guy, the term applied to anyone that hadn't been proven in combat yet.. FO - Forward Observer, an artilleryman, usually an officer Fougasse - 55-gal drum filled with napalm and C4 used as defensive perimeter weapon (also "Phougas") Frag - Offensive Fragmentation hand grenade: five second fuse Friendlies - Other US or allied troops on the battlefield Friendly Fire - Officially called "Misadventure" by the DOD. See Short Round Fire Mission - radio request to the artillery to drop some HE on the bad guys Firecracker - M-449 round fired by artillery contains bomblets which go off in mid-air. Fox Four - FAC terminology for an F-4 Phantom in the ground support role. FSB - Fire Support Base: usually a battery (3 105mm Howitzers) of guns with a perimeter FTA - Fun, Travel, Adventure, from Army recruiting ad. More commonly, F*** The Army) FUBAR - F____ed Up Beyond All Recognition. Funny Money - Military Payment Certificates, scrip issued in lieu of dollars Funny Paper - Radio code for a topo map G
Goofy Grape - Radio code for purple smoke GP - General Purpose bomb. Can kill troops or bust bunkers Green Can - 90mm cannon round containing 8,500 darts or "flechettes" Grunts - Infantrymen Guns - short for gun ships Gunship - Usually a UH1B Huey, later a UH1G Huey Cobra. Gun Target Line - You don't want to be on it. See Short Round Gun Truck - Cargo truck with added armor and machineguns for convoy escort H
Hawk - Radio code for ambush team Hawkeye - Use varied 1) a US sniper or 2) an O-1 aircraft with a starlight scope. HE - High Explosive. HEAT - High Explosive Anti-Tank - fin-stabilized armor defeating projectile HEP - High Explosive Plastic (Composition B) HHC - Headquarters and Headquarters Company H & I - Harassing and Interdicting artillery fire Hmong - The Montagnards of Laos. Comprised the bulk of the Laotian Royalist Army; fought for the U.S. Hoi Chanh - an enemy soldier who took advantage of the Chieu Hoi program Hook - short for a CH-47 "Chinook" or CH-54 "Sky-Crane" helicopter Horn - the radio Hotel Charlie - Hot Chow Hre - Tribe of Montagnards, 110,000 strong. Huey - Bell UH-1A Helicopter I
IFFV - 1st Field Force Vietnam I Corp - AO of northern South Vietnam II Corp - The AO for the 1/69 Armor, included Binh Dinh, Kontum, Pleiku provinces III Corp - South western South Vietnam Illum - Illumination rounds fired by artillery, mortar, M79, or dropped by aircraft In Country - on the ground in South Vietnam Indian Country - Area controlled by Charles IP - Initial Point - A reference point in the attack J
Jarai - Tribe of Montagnards, living in the Pleiku area Jesus Nut - Large nut which holds the rotor blade on rotor shaft Jody - "...Jody was there when you left, you're right" JP-4 - Fuel for Hueys and fast movers Jungle Boot - Special boots with stainless steel shank and holes to drain water out Jungle Fatigues - tropical weight jacket and pants Jungle Penetrator - bullet shaped device used by helicopter crews for extracting down pilots or wounded soldiers in triple-canopy jungle. Jungle Rot - Any of a number of fungal infections caused by the moisture in Vietnam K
KHA - Killed Hostile Action KIA - Killed In Action Killer Junior - Killer Senior - technique developed out of the need to protect 155mm battery from ground attacks, since Army didn't design a "Beehive" round for the 155mm howitzer. Killer Juniors were perfected by Lt. Colonel Robert Dean the CO of 1/8th Field Artillery, 25th Infantry Division Artillery. The technique called
for firing HE Projectiles with Time Fuses set at 2 seconds or greater to burst approximately 30 feet off the ground at ranges of 200 to 1,000 meters. Killer Juniors (and the 8" Killer Senior) proved to be more effective than Beehive for antipersonnel because the enemy could not crawl under the burst as they could the fan of the Beehive pattern. Kit Carson Scout - North Vietnamese Regulars who defected and acted as scouts for US troops Klick - a kilometer, 1,000 meters L
La Dai - Come here! Laager - Tanks or APCs circled in a defensive position, usually at night LAW - Light Antitank Weapon - M-72 - Fired 66mm round from disposable launcher LBE - Load Bearing Equipment, web gear, system for carrying canteen, ammo, pack, battle dressing LBJ - Long Binh Jail, the Army Stockade in Long Binh Leaf Killers - nickname for Dumbo pilots spraying Agent Orange defoliant; Operation "Ranch Hand" Lefty Lemon - Radio Code for Yellow Smoke Legs - non-airborne infantrymen (see also straight legs) Lima Delta - Line of Departure: point of no return in an attack Lima Lima - LL - Land Line: a field phone Lima Papa - LP - Listening Post Little People - radio code for ARVNs LLDB - Vietnamese abbreviation for "Luc Luong Dac Biet", Airborne Special Forces Loach - Light Observation Helicopter, usually an OH-6 (Hughes 500C) but also OH-58 (Bell Jetranger) Log - Logistics Log Bird - resupply helicopter, usually a Huey, sometimes a Chinook LOH - Light Observation Helicopter (Loach), usually a Hughes 500C but also Bell Jetranger Louie Lime - Radio Code for Green Smoke Low Boy - a tank transporter, also called Dragon Wagon LRRP - Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol - 5 man team dropped into Indian country LRRP Rations - freeze dried food developed for Long Range Reconnaissance Patrols tasted better than "C" Rations LZ - Landing Zone (note that some were Fire Support Bases and had names) M
M-2HB - Caliber 50 machine gun (HB = Heavy Barrel) M-3A1 - Caliber 45 submachine gun (M-3 was older variant) M-16A1 - Later, better model of the famous automatic rifle M-16E1 - Early model M-16, which jammed frequently M-17 - Protective mask worn by non-vehicle crewmen M-18A1 - Claymore antipersonnel weapon, threw out 700 steel balls, lethal to 50 meters. M-24 - Korean War vintage Chaffee light tank (ARVN’s only) M-26A1 - Fragmentation hand grenade (offensive) M-291 - 81mm mortar; range 3,500 meters; found in weapons platoon of Infantry Rifle Company M-30 - 4.2 inch (107mm) mortar (rifled tube), maximum range 5,650 meters; usually a platoon was assigned to a Battalion Headquarters M-33 - Fragmentation hand grenade (defensive) aka "baseball grenade" M-41 - Korean War vintage Walker Bulldog light tank (ARVNs only) M-42 - Duster (twin 40mm BOFORS antiaircraft cannon on M-41 chassis) M-48A3 - Main Battle Tank used in Vietnam because of its thick hull M-49 - Trip flare M-55 - Quad .50 caliber machine-gun mount.. Range 7,275 meters M-56 - Self-Propelled Anti Tank gun (90mm) on tracked chassis, nicknamed "Scorpion" 52A2 - 5-ton 10 wheel diesel tractor, as in tractor-trailer M-60 - in Vietnam, the 7.62mm squad machine gun of the infantry; belt fed, air-cooled; 600 rounds per minute M-67 - 90mm recoilless rifle; range 450-800 meters; an Anti0Tank weapon, it was used to bust bunkers in Vietnam M-72 - LAW (Light Antitank Weapon) 66mm rocket in disposable fiberglass launcher M-79 - 40mm grenade launcher, aka "Thumper"; range (HE) 400 meters M-88 - Tracked recovery vehicle (used by armor and Maintenance units) M-101 – Split-trail 105mm Howitzer (traditional Artillery units); range 11,000 meters M-102 – Closed-trail 105mm Howitzer (Airborne and Air Cav units); range 11,500 meters; could be lifted by a Huey. M-106 - Self-propelled, 4.2 inch (107mm), mortar track (modified M-113) M-107 - Self-propelled, 175mm gun; tube had range of 32,600 meters; crew of five. M-108 - Self-propelled 105mm howitzer; tube had range of 11,500 meters; M-109 - Self-propelled 155mm howitzer; tube had range of 14,600 meters; largest direct-support artillery M-110 - Self-propelled 8" howitzer; tube range 16,800 meters; five-man crew M-113 - Armored Personnel Carrier fitted with Chrysler 209HP gasoline engine M-113A1 - M-113 fitted with General Motors 215HP Detroit Diesel engine M-114 - Tracked, armored, scout vehicle fitted with Chrysler gasoline engine M-114A1 - M-114 fitted with General Motors Detroit Diesel engine M-125A1 - Self-propelled 81mm mortar (based on M-113A1 chassis) M-132 - "Zippo" track mechanized flamethrower (based on M-113A1 chassis) M-151 - Jeep (truck, cargo, 4x4) M-449 - "Firecracker" round fired by artillery containing bomblets, which go off in mid-air. M-548 - Tracked cargo vehicle M-577 - Tracked command vehicle, modified M-113 (used by all maneuver Battalions) M-578 - Tracked recovery vehicle (used by infantry and artillery) M-728 - Combat Engineer Vehicle (CEV) M-60A1 chassis/turret w/ 165mm demolition gun Mac the FAC - The Forward Air Controller, usually flying around in an O-1 Bird Dog MACV - Military Assistance Command Vietnam Mad Minute - Random firing of all perimeter defensive weapons to discourage infiltration Max Ord - short for Maximum Ordinate Maximum Ordinate - The highest point in artillery round's trajectory, important for pilot's to know MEDCAP - Medical Civil Action Program - Our Medics treated Vietnamese villagers Meo - Laotian term for Hmong tribesmen, meaning "savages". MFIC - Mother F_____ In Charge Mighty Mite - Small portable blower used for filling tunnels with CS (tear agent) powder Mike Mike - Millimeter Mil - unit of circular and vertical/horizontal measurement in tank gunnery. 6,400 in a circle MO-GAS - Short for Motor vehicle Gasoline - military grade gasoline Moi - Literally, "savages". Vietnamese term for Montagnard tribesmen Montagnard - French Literal: "Mountaineer" Originally from Polynesia; they were the original inhabitants of the coastal region of Vietnam Montagnard Bar - A Hershey Tropical Bar MPC - Military Payment Certificates, scrip issued in lieu of dollars MRRF - Mobile Road Reaction Force N
Napalm - Thickened gasoline. Resembles Jell-O in bombs, maple syrup in a Zippo-track NCOIC - Non-Commissioned Officer In Charge NDP - Night Defensive Position Nickel - radio code for a junior NCO No Bic - I don't understand NLT - No Later Than Number One - The Best Number 10 - The worst Number Ten Thousand – the absolute worst. Nung - Tribe of Montagnards, 15,000 strong; the fiercest of the Montagnard CIDG troops. NVA - North Vietnamese Army O
OIC - Officer In Charge One Four - The platoon Sergeant One Six - The platoon leader One Six Alpha - The platoon leader's gunner, the Assistant tank commander OOA - On or About Oscar Papa - Observation Post Oscar Track - Call sign for Company HQs or Battalion S-3 P
P-38 - Can opener that came with C-Rations Penny - Radio code for an enlisted man PFT - Portable Flame Thrower Phougas - 55-gal drum filled with napalm and C4 used as defensive perimeter weapon (also "Fougasse") Piaster - Vietnamese Money (in fall 1968 100 piasters was 1 US Dollar) POL - Petroleum, Oil and Lubricants Poncho Liner - lightweight, camouflage blanket for use at night. Very useful Pop Smoke - to ignite a smoke grenade for identification and wind direction for Hueys PRC-25 - AN/PRC-25 man portable FM radio set (prick-25) PRC-77 - AN/PRC-77 man portable secure FM radio set (prick-77) Prick 25 - Slang for the AN/PRC-25 man portable FM radio set Punji Stake - sharpened bamboo stick booby trap smeared with excrement to cause infection Push - radio frequency (because you Pushed a button to select one) Q
Quad-Fifty – Four, Caliber 50 machine guns (M2HB) mounted on a gun truck for convoy defense Quarter Cav-50 - Nickname for 1/4th Cavalry Quick Reaction Force - Helicopter-borne infantry with gun ships able to react to enemy attacks Q-Service - Quarterly service of vehicles R
Range Card – Artillery never used them, but said they did Red Ball - Radio code for a hard surface road, Also nickname for resupply convoy Red Haze - Radio code for ammonia sensing people-sniffer in aircraft Red Legs - Artillerymen, aka "Cannon-Cockers" Red Splash - another name for mad-minute Renago - Tribe of Montagnards, 10,000 strong. Rootin’-Tootin’-Raspberry - Radio Code for Red Smoke REMF - Rear Echelon Mother F***er Remington Raider - term for REMF (above); anyone typewriter-armed; see also "Smith-Corona Commando" Rhade - Tribe of Montagnards, 120,000 strong; of Malay-Polynesian descent, continued to build houses on stilts. RIF – Reconnaissance in Force. RF/PF or Ruff Puffs - Regional Forces/Popular Forces, usually without weapons (see ARVN) Rock N' Roll - an M-16 on full automatic Rome Plow - A Caterpillar D7E bulldozer used for defoliation missions. The blade, called a plow, was manufactured in Rome Georgia. Round Eye - Caucasian, usually a female RPD - (Ruchnoi Pulyemet Degtyarova) Soviet made squad machinegun, 7.62mm RPG2 - Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher, Soviet made RPG7 - Later model Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher, Soviet made RRF - Rapid Reaction Force RTO - Radio Telephone Operator Rucksack - also “Ruck”: packs carried by grunts Ruff Puffs - Regional Forces/Popular Forces, usually without weapons (see ARVN) S
SA - Small Arms Sabot - Dutch word for "wooden shoe" cladding around an APDS round Sandy - A1-E1 Skyraider providing fire suppression on a SAR mission SAR - Search And Rescue mission - looking for downed pilots Sappers - NVA/VC whose job it was to blow things up; also an engineer Search and Avoid - Typical ARVN mission. Search and Destroy – Typical American mission Sedang - Tribe of Montagnards, 70,000 strong. Short - Very little time left in country Short Round - Artillery round that falls short of the target on the Gun Target Line Sinh Loi - Sorry about that! SITREP - Situation Report, made hourly to next higher headquarters Six - Radio call sign of a unit commander (Company, Battalion) Six One Higher - Radio code for your boss if you're a Six SKS - Soviet/Chicom 7.62mm carbine Sky Pilot - Chaplain Sky Soldier - paratrooper Slick - a UH1D used for carrying troops, as opposed to a gunship it had slick sides no guns Sling Load - load carried beneath a helicopter on a cable Smith-Corona Commando - Term for a REMF; anyone typewriter-armed; see also Remington Raider SNAKE - slang for AH-1 Huey Cobra attack helicopter SOI - Signal Operating Instructions: codes for radio communications SPAD - A1-E1 Skyraider providing tactical air support SP - Start Point. Beginning of a road march Spectre - Radio code for the AC-130 Gunship. (confused with "Spooky" and "Puff" by all) Spooky - Radio code for the AC-47 Gunship the REMF’s and Saigon reporters called "Puff" SP Pak - Sundry Pak Platoon. Contained cartons of cigarettes, soap, toilet paper, etc.. SRAP - Short Range Ambush Platoon Starlight Scope - AN/PVS-2 Image Intensification Device, turned night into day Strongpoint - term for any defended position, especially along highways to discourage ambushes. Super-quick - 105mm howitzer HE round fuse for immediate detonation Swift Boat - 50' boats operated by USN out of Qui Nhon et al; armed with 50 caliber machine guns T
TA-312 - Hand-cranked field phone TAC-E - Tactical Emergency TAOR - Tactical Area Of Responsibility Tango Charlie - Radio code for Tank Commander (also Track Commander) Tea Party - radio code for an ambush Tee-Tee - very little Three Quarter Cav - nickname of 3rd Squadron 4th Cavalry because abbreviation is 3/4 Cav Thumper - an M-79 grenade launcher, so called because it made a hollow "thump" when fired Tien Bing - Chinese for "Sky Soldier" Tien Lien - Vietnamese phrase for "forward" or "charge" TOC - Tactical Operations Center: a huge bunker where the old man lives with his staff TOE - (also TO&E) Table of Oranganization and Equipment; Army rules for personnel & equipment TOT - Time On Target - Artillery fire from different batteries timed to explode at the same time. Tracks - the collection of track blocks on a tracked vehicle (REMF’s say treads) TROPO - short for tropospheric antennas used for long-range voice communication U
UCMJ - Uniform Code of Military Justice UFN - Until Further Notice UH-1A - sometimes appeared as HU-1A, which led to name "Huey", the symbol of the Vietnam War. Uncle Ho - Ho Chi Minh USARPAC - United States Army Pacific USARV - United States Army Vietnam URC-10 - AN/URC-10 Survival Radio used by LRRPs UTM - Universal Transverse Mercator - grid system on topo maps V
Viet Cong - Literally, Vietnamese Communist: The Former Viet Minh were co-opted by communist sympathizers Viet Minh - Literally, Vietnamese Nationalist: movement started by Ho Chi Minh to get French out of Indochina Voting Machines - Nickname for ARVN tanks because they only came out during a “coup d'etat” VTR - Vehicle, Tracked, Recovery (the tow track for tanks), Usually an M-88 W
Web Gear - canvas belt and shoulder straps used for packing equipment and ammunition on infantry operations Whispering Death - Charles' name for a B-52 strike. He couldn't hear or see them WHA - Wounded Hostile Action WIA - Wounded In Action Willie Peter - White Phosphorous round or grenade (evil stuff) X
XM-177E2 - CAR-15, short-barrel, collapsible-stock version of M-16 rifle XM-203 - 40mm grenade launcher attachment for M-16 rifle XO - Executive Officer; the second in command of a unit. Y
Yankee Station - Tonkin Gulf Area of South China Sea patrolled by US Navy Yards - Affectionate GI term for Montagnards Z
Zippo Track - An M-113 APC converted to a mechanized flame-thrower M132A2 Zulu Time - The world is divided into 24 time zones. For easy reference in communications, a letter of the alphabet has been assigned to each time zone (no letter I or O as they can be confused with numbers). The "clock" at Greenwich, England is used as the standard clock for international reference of time in communications, military, maritime and other activities that cross time zones. The letter designator for this clock is Z. Times are usually written in military time or 24 hour format such as 1830Z (6:30 pm). To pronounce this, the phonetic alphabet is used for the letter Z, or Zulu. This time is sometimes referred to as Zulu Time because of its assigned letter. It's official name is Coordinated Universal Time or (UTC). Previously it had been known as Greenwich Mean Time or GMT but this has been replaced with UTC. Zulu +seven hours is the time in 'Nam
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